A Destiny Altered
by tetsu-kuh
Summary: AU Naruto has trained with the Akatsuki for all of his life. This is a tale of difficult trials he must surpass before he can truly achieve what he desires: To belong. Now, as one who can hold his own, he must strive to live the way he longs for.
1. Departure

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Departure

When naruto awoke he could hear a very familiar sound that made him shiver imagining what his next few hours would be like. Usually he could tell what the torture was going to be by the sounds. The screech of blades sharpening meant cutting A dull thud meant beating, and nothing meant...well he didn't want to think about that. Once in a while he would have his gag and blindfold taken off so they could see his expression and hear his screams. The scary man only brought in a couple people in the small room at a time, so it happened quite often. It was true Naruto was a spectator sport…a freak show.

However, this time, it was different, Naruto awoke to the sounds of laughter. He was used to the noise for the people would do so when he was being beaten. Naruto was only three years old and he could barely speak. He was tough, after all, he was beaten day after day, night after night. It was all the same. Big pain, little pain, big pain, little pain.

Naruto couldn't really remember anything much before he had got here. He didn't even know where HERE was. All he remembered was screaming for his life and being carried away to someplace away from the nursing school where he had usually slept.

The little blonde boy did have a happy thought. He had a friend, he didn't remember anything about the person, he didn't even know what the person looked like. That person used to accompany Naruto at some point in time. Whether it was a girl or boy, he couldn't recall, all he knew was that when he thought of this unknown person, he felt a small bit of comfort, a small bit of hope, that he could somehow escape or flee the hellhole he was in. All that accompanied the short boy now, was sadness along with loneliness.

Something about the laughter outside the small room this particular morning gave Naruto a slight discomfort. He could not anticipate his day. He had never woken up to this sound before. He was afraid, fearful. He didn't want to stay awake, he wanted to go back to sleep, he wanted the day to be over so he would get his six hours of rest from pain. He wanted to go home.

Home, that was a word which Naruto had learned by the age of one. However, the word had now lost all meaning, all comfort. Home was nothing, just…just…..a meaningless word, an empty word.

Naruto lived in a cage, a cage that was inside a tent. He didn't have much room to walk around. Just enough space to extend his body to doze on the bright, filthy hay that he had under him. When it was show time, the scary man would drag him unwillingly out of the cage and set him standing up on a small pillar only about two feet high. Which was still high considering Naruto's age and height. The scary man would then take a whip and beat Naruto four what seemed like hours. After getting used to it, the pain subsided within a few minutes. But then Naruto would be taken out from his black, cubical, cage and be beaten again.

He had no scars on his back due to the fact that he had a demon sealed inside him that gave him quick healing powers. The demon inside him would quickly seal the wound until it was a small scab, then it would let it heal on its own.

This was Naruto's life, day in day out, to obediently stand on a pillar in front of a crowd and take beatings from the scary man with the weapon of his choice.

However, Naruto could tell this day was going to be different. The scary man stormed in the tent looking stern and furious as usual. He quickly unlocked the cage and opened the creaky gate. He stuck his arm in the barred enclosure, and grasped Naruto's left leg firmly and dragged Naruto's body out on to the floor, and out the tent.

Naruto could not remember the last time he had been outside the tent. All he could see was the bright yellow and red colors on the walls of the inside. He had no recollection of seeing the outside whatsoever. The scary man dragged Naruto for so long that even after Naruto's shirt had ripped, his rough skin had started to open up again. The bursting scabs emitted with an excruciating pain. Naruto could then see the dark, wet, trail of blood his back left behind.

When they finally did stop, the scary man let go of Naruto's leg and walked inside another tent motioning for Naruto to follow suit. Naruto did as he was told obediently and entered the lime green tent.

This tent was a bit smaller than the one he was used to. There the scary man threw Naruto's body into a semi-bigger cage that held another person just his age. It was a girl, she had blue hair and whitish grayish eyes.

She looked at him and Naruto noticed something about her that he quickly pointed out, " You cheeks aw wedd." Of course Naruto was still young, so he hadn't really developed much of a vocabulary and he had trouble pronouncing his R's.

The blue-haired girl quickly turned away from him and avoided eye contact. Naruto then saw that there was not one scar on her at all. She was clean, just like naruto. Then he wondered how she had ended up here.

His silent thoughts were interrupted by the whispering of the scary man. The scary man spoke in a soft and hushed voice to the person right next to him. Lucky for Naruto, he could hear well so Naruto caught every word the scary man whispered to his companion.

" You know why I put the kid here don't you?" The scary man asked.

The man he was talking to shook his head in confusion.

" There is no future with this kid no more. He's not making money, not upholding the dough. That's why I brought him here. I need him taken care of, tonight. The boss is gonna have my butt if I don't get rid of this guy as soon as possible. My neck's on the line, so don't forget, or yours will be too."

The man gulped and nodded with wide eyes.

Naruto was a smart boy at his age. He understood almost every word the scary man had said. After an hour, he finally pieced the words he did understand and realized that they were going to end his life, sometime soon. The man said tonight, but what was twonite? Naruto sat and puzzled at what time he had left. Then he stood up and decided, he had to get out of there, he had no other alternative, unless he wanted to die.

Then Naruto paused, die. A terrible word Naruto understood even at his tiny age. When the people would come to see him, he could hear and see the people shouting the horrible word over and over and over again repeating it as if it were a good thing to say. The question was, did he want to die? All he did was suffer here, and what could he do out in the real world? He was a tiny person in a big world. NO! Nothing was worth death. Nothing. He would not accept the thing that seemed so inevitable. He HAD to get out. But how?

After countless futile attempts to break the cage, dig, squeeze through the cage, and eat through the cage, Naruto gave up and sat down. It was hopeless, he didn't know when twonite would come, but he was sure it was soon. He could see the sun fading through the crease of the door to the tent. Naruto's bunk mate had already fallen fast asleep.

Again his thoughts slowly drifted again towards what was going to become of them. Naruto was full of terror once more. He remained calm instead of panicking hysterically like other babies would do. He sat down to ponder on ways to escape. It wasn't long before the sun had totally faded and left naruto and his tent totally enveloped in black darkness. Now Naruto couldn't see, the only light that was even barely visible was the moon light in the crease where Naruto had saw the sun.

Suddenly, after what seemed like hours (and it probably was), Naruto saw the same man the scary man was talking to enter the room staring blankly at Naruto with his left hand behind his back. He seemed to be hiding something. Naruto was not afraid, he wanted to know the answer to his question, when was twonite?

The man then walked toward Naruto's cage, but before he could reach it, a man walked in. The man wore a black cloak so nothing was visible even through the weak moonlight that was shown. The only thing visible of the man, was his eyes. His blood red eyes that were visible even throughout the darkness.

The next thing happened so fast, the man looked straight into the red eyes and after two seconds of eye contact, fell to the ground foaming white stuff from his white lifeless lips. The man seemed to twitch on the ground with his eyes rolled back into his sockets so that Naruto only saw the whites of his eyes. The man held a needle in his left hand which was slightly perceptible in the moonlight.

Then, the man in red eyes then glared at Naruto and came nearer to him. Instead of opening the gate to the cage with keys, his hand just ripped it open and tossed it quickly to the ground. He stuck his hands in and placed both his hands just under Naruto's armpits. He lifted him up from the smelly straw, and took him out of the cage. He lifted Naruto's shirt up and looked at his belly.

Naruto then saw something about him for the first time, he had a swirly thingy on his belly that he had never seen before. The man with red eyes then carried Naruto with his right arm, and carried the blue-haired girl on the left. He checked her belly too. However, she was clean without anything at all. However he did not put her down. He carried both of them in each arm and walked.

He walked and walked and walked. There was total silence throughout the night except the occasional crickets chirping here and there. After the man walked and walked for a long time, they reached a pair of stairs. He climbed them and there was no end. Until they finally reached it.

There was another man waiting outside for them. He then spoke.

" You found two?"

" No, I'm found one, but I'm leaving this one out here for her to be picked up."

" You've really gone soft Itachi."

" Don't make fun Sasori, or I will have your head in my arms just as I do these two."

They both started walking and after a while, the man with red eyes named Itachi, placed the blue-haired girl, in front of a door.

" This is where she belongs. The Hyugga residence. May she grow up strong-willed and skilled in order to protect herself and comrades." Itachi said.

" I don't care, just take the blonde kid and let's go!" Sasori said his voice rising.

" Keep quiet. We don't want to wake anybody up now."

So without another word said, they left the big place that had big gates and Naruto lost consciousness after that.

Born and raised by each member of the Akutsuki, Naruto grew to be a very skilled Ninja. He would spend one year with each of them. Ten Akutsuki members, ten years later.

Naruto is now thirteen, and ready to complete his first mission, acquire the demon vessel that will enter the Chunnin exam…

Author's Note: Sorry this chapter was so short and i hope you enjoyed it. Don't worry, the action will come VERY soon. PLZ R&R! flames are accepted as long as they are constructive, thank you.


	2. Weapon part 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Weapon Part 1

Naruto couldn't believe Itachi was giving him the chance that he had wanted for all of eternity, he was finally going on his first mission alone! "YIPEE!" Naruto shouted in the middle of the forest in Fire Country.

Naruto was being accompanied by Itachi up to this point. His orders were clear, especially since Itachi had repeated them hundreds of times. " Now, this is where I leave you Naruto. Don't fail us, we didn't train you for nothing. Now, you will be paired up with the demon vessel so you won't have to worry about finding that person. Now remember-"

Naruto smiled and finished the rest of Itachi's sentence, " Don't hurt him, just capture him and bring him back to the base. Got it. Don't worry about me Itachi-san, I won't let this mission go astray. I'm focused, and excited!" Naruto said as he jumped up ecstatically. Naruto wore a very large cloak that almost touched the ground. The cloak was to cover the other cloak that he had under, his very own Akutsuki cloak that he had received just a few days ago.

" Oh one more thing before I forget," Itachi said as he reached into his cloak and pulled out a headband made for Naruto. " It's your cover-up. Well sort of, as from now on, you are an official member of the Hidden Sound Village. Good luck."

Naruto was handed the forehead protector and quickly put it on. With that, they both headed separate directions. Speeding off and dashing through trees to reach their destinations.

After a few minutes of hopping from tree to tree, Naruto stopped and landed on the soft grass beneath him. " Oh yeah! I can't believe I almost forgot, I need my teammates. Thank Mihniopaksu-sama for this one."

Naruto formed a small amount of hand seals quickly and stopped at the tiger seal. Suddenly, out of the earth formed two people, a boy and a girl. The boy had long black hair, reaching to his shoulders, he wore a greet t-shirt, and black jeans. The girl wore the exact same thing, except she had brown hair and it was a bit shorter than the other boy's.

" Alright, I think we're ready to enter the village of Konoha don't you?" Naruto asked the two teenagers he had just created.

They both said the same thing at the exact same time without any emotion at all, " Yes."

That was all the information Naruto needed to take off once again to reach the Hidden village of Konoha, the village, where the Chunnin exam lay ahead.

-----

" Welcome, to the first exam of this chunnin exam. In this room you will be taking a written exam. Let me explain how this works: There are ten questions as you can see on your desk. For each question you get write, that's a point. You and your teammates all must pass in order to advance to the second exam." Morino Ibiki explained once all the gennin were seated in the large room full of rows of desks. Just like a regular academy in Konoha.

However, Naruto never had been to an academy, he was only trained to kill, he was a tool, for the Akutsuki. He didn't mind, but now he was very tense, every single question on the test was very complicated. He could barely pronounce the words, let alone figure them out. There was only one option left, to copy.

" By the way, those who are caught cheating, will be thrown out immediately. This test is designed to be hard, but some of you may make it. We have Jounin to the left and right to the room to catch you if you are cheating. If you are caught, then you and your teammates must leave." Morino Ibiki said again.

" Hold on a minute." A voice said somewhere in the large room. " There's no tenth question!"

Morino Ibiki smiled slightly, " So you've noticed. Once two hours, ready or not, I will repeat the tenth question once and only once. The tenth question is ten points. Once the written exam starts, there is to be no talking."

" Wait!" Naruto glanced back to see a girl in pink hair and green eyes raising her hand. She frowned and then said, " But that means that if answered correct, the tenth question allows you to pass the test even if you get all the others wrong."

" Good observations, all of you, that is a fact, but now, it's time to start, ready, GO!"

Naruto needed a way to figure out a way to cheat but how? He quickly glanced to his right and left, already he could see that the process was working. He then slowly closed his eyes thinking back to when he was first training with the Akutsuki. It was probably his third year of training, with Kisame, or who he liked to call, " Fishy-san"

Naruto put his hands together and very softly said, " Kuhatsu No Jutsu." Naruto then focused his eyes on the person in front of him. He stared at the black leather jacket with a dragon symbol on the back as very tiny water drops fell on to the boy's paper. Amazingly, it did not leave a wet mark or such a thing that could be traceable. However, every droplet that fell on the boy's paper, showed on Naruto's. All his answers at least. Naruto didn't have to write a single thing. He just pretended he was working and let his jutsu complete the process. When he was done, he looked around and saw that other people, infact many people had already completed their test. However, there were the select few, that still were confused out of their minds, scratching their heads and rubbing their chins.

When the two hours were over, Morino Ibiki finally spoke. " Now here is the tenth question. But here's the catch, you may decide to take it or not take it. The choice is yours. But I must warn you, if you take it and miss it, then you will never be able to become a chunnin. If you leave, so do your teammates and you may be ready next year.

Decide NOW!"

Many people in the room tensed up. Some not for themselves, but for their teammates. Hands were being raised left and right high up into the air for all to witness their embarrassment and bravery. The Jounin on the sides of the classroom were shouting out the team numbers of all people who had raised their hands and told them to exit the room full of tension.

Naruto sat back and smiled. - I don't have to raise my hand one bit. I don't have any teammates and I know already about the tenth question. I feel sorry for those who are leaving. Not really.-

A good long pause was expected as the gennin left the room. However, once the last of them closed the door, Ibiki smiled and said, " Congratulations to you who have passed the first test. There was no tenth question, but as you can see, it has lowered the room's numbers by more than half. However, there are a lot more than I expected, actually, I don't think we've ever had this many people pass the first test. Oh well, your numbers will still go down soon enough."

The only window in the room shattered to tiny pieces as a woman with purple hair flew threw them and landed in front of Ibiki. " Alright everyone, follow me to the second test!" There was a silence throughout the room and then as all the gennin stood up, the woman named Anko led them out the door and outside the forest.

The forest was fenced around the perimeter and there was barbed wire at the top. There were many warning signs posted on the fence saying BEWARE and KEEP OUT! Anko explained the situation of the second test to the remaining gennin.

" Alright, now I will each assign one of the two different scrolls there are to each team. There's the earth scroll, and the heaven scroll. The objective, children, is to acquire one of each scroll and reach the tower in the middle of the forest. You do have a deadline, which is three days. Eat what you can to stay alive, but as the signs say, beware, for there are many poisoness things in this forest and I'm not just talking about the food. However, the catch is, you won't know who has which scroll, so you must fight somebody for the right one. Also, this may be the chunnin exam, but that has nothing to do with surviving, the only safe test would be the first one. So be alert at all times. Good luck."

" Wait a minute, that means that only half of the gennin here will be able to pass on!" A tanned person in a dark coat shouted as he frowned.

" That is true. Also, somebody may just take more than they need and keep the scrolls themselves preventing all those people from advancing.

Again the crowd of teenagers tensed up and became serious.

Anko then assigned each of the gennin teams a scroll behind a stand that had a curtain.

" Each team will be positioned at a different entrance to the forest, remember three days, two scrolls, and one life. Go!" Anko shouted as all the gates around the fence were released. The teams dashed from tree to tree deep into the extremely large forest hoping to find a team weaker than them to fight.

Naruto took his time walking through the grass not worrying about anything. " Okay, now we don't really have much worthy opponents or so I think. So we can take our time and when we come to someone we'll fight them and take their scroll. Now, we have the heaven scroll, we just need an earth scroll and we'll head for the tower." Naruto informed his two teammates. He didn't really need to but he liked the conversation anyway.

" Yes." The boy and the girl said again. Naruto sighed and continued to walk but picking up the pace a little. Sure enough, he encountered a team consisting of a black haired guy, a fat brown haired guy, and the pink haired girl with green eyes he had saw earlier.

" Hey you all!" Naruto shouted at them. " What kind of scroll do you have?"

" Earth," The fat kid said as he pulled out a bag of potato chips and started chomping on them eating like a piranha.

The pink haired girl punched him in the arm and said, " Chouji! Don't tell him!"

The black haired kid then said, " I think it's a little to late for that Sakura. Don't worry, these guys are weak I can feel it. Or at least the blond one is, the other two are actually pretty strong. We better not underestimate them anyways."

The girl named Sakura nodded and then said, " alright Sasuke-kun, I'll try my best, Chouji too!"

The fat boy named Chouji looked up from his plastic bag of food and said, " what? I don't remember saying anything like that!" But another punch to his arm came swinging with immense speed once more.

" Sharingan!" Sasuke shouted as his eyes transformed from solid black to blood red.

" Wow, so you must be Itachi-san's little bro huh?" Naruto said smiling. " This may be fun!"

" What do you know about my brother?" Sasuke demanded.

Naruto scratched his head and then said, " I'll tell you what, take the scroll from us and I'll tell you all I know."

Sasuke smirked and then said, " Get ready!"

But before anything had happened, Naruto grinned and said, " No need, it's over." He then held out the earth scroll in front of them.

They all gasped in amazement and horror as Naruto walked straight toward the tower.

" Wait! I won't let you take our scroll like that! Give it back!" Chouji shouted as he charged at Naruto's team.

" Chouji NO!" Sasuke shouted as his teammate rushed toward the unknown fighters. But it was too late.

Chouji took foot step by footstep towards his enemies, but even before his large body had been able to reach within two meters of them, he was brought straight down to the ground. He was lying on his belly with four kunai in his back. A dark puddle of blood leaked out from under him and stained the greenish grass. Sakura ran towards Chouji, tears streaming down her pink cheeks like a river. Naruto and his teammates walked off out of view and left his enemies to take care of their own problems

After a few hours of walking, a very familiar voice spoke to Naruto from behind a tree. As the person stepped out Naruto gasped in surprise.

" So there is someone who would be a challenge for me! What are you doing in the chunnin exam, Orochimaru-dono?"

" I came to see if there would be any new containers for me." Orochimaru said casually.

" Oh, found any yet?" Naruto asked in a friendly manner.

" Only one." Informed Orochimaru as he stared intensely at Naruto.

Naruto got the message and then warned, " Don't try it Oro, I'm just as strong or even stronger than you. It would be fatal to even get in my way."

Orochimaru smiled deviously and then asked, " Since when has my pupil ever been cold blooded?"

" I'm not your pupil anymore, that was many years ago, I'm here on a job for the Akutsuki. You were once with us, why did you leave?"

" For reasons I can't explain to you, your so kind Naruto-kun. When ;will you learn that a strong shinobi must be ruthless, cold blooded, stopping at nothing to carry out the mission?" Orochimaru asked.

" We have so many different points of views. You know why I'm here, can you direct me in the direction of the demon vessel?" Naruto said.

" I'm afraid I'll take my chances at risking my life to fight you. I cannot let you pass." Informed Orochimaru as he took his usual stance of fighting.

" Had you left later, you would have see that I accelerated in my abilities by 100 fold. Are you sure you want to challenge me?"

" You would have needed to increase by 1000 fold to have defeated me! Get ready!" Orochimaru shouted as he leapt off of the tree and shot straight down at his blond opponent.

Naruto jumped back a few meters and bit his thumb. As the red blood gushed out and down his finger, he performed a small series of hand seals and slammed his open palm into the ground. A large dragon standing thirty feet tall appeared flying at an incredible speed toward the snake-like man. The lime green dragon quickly swallowed Orochimaru bringing him all the way to its belly.

Suddenly, from inside the dragons intestines, Naruto heard a sort of muffled voice shout, " SEIATSU NO JUTSU!" The green dragon jumped as if it had been electrocuted with a high voltage jolt. It's eyes turned to glowing red. The dragon looked directly at its new target, Naruto.

It charged at its creator flailing its wings back and forth with great power giving it speed. The blond shinobi thought fast and quickly performed more hand seals and stuck his hand out in front of him. " Ishidzukuri No Jutsu!" Naruto shouted.

The exact moment that the dragon had touched Naruto's hand, it turned to stone as well as the contents inside the dragon instantly, causing it to fall and shatter into large pieces.

" I'm sorry Oro-san, don't worry, I'm sure you'll get out of it later. I will not be accepted as a container. That's just the way it's gonna be. Anyway, see ya!" Naruto said as he walked off again towards the middle of the forest.

Although Naruto was the first to claim both scrolls, he wasn't the first to reach the tower in the middle part of the forest. There was a team from the Hidden Sand village, that arrived before him. Naruto did reach the tower right after though. He came at the end of the first day where he then rested on a comfortable mat lying on the floor.

Soon enough, by mid day on the second day, many other gennin started to arrive. On the third day, Naruto saw Sasuke, Sakura, and Chouji (bandaged up on his back and front) arrive the tower holding both scrolls tightly. The team from the sand that had arrived first, carried more than seven scrolls altogether. Anko was right, there was less then half then there was before.

When they had all had entered the building, they were escorted to a large room with gray tiles on the floor. About twenty feet up high, there were rails for people to watch whatever people did in this room. The room was very dull, with a big statue at the end of one wall. They were brought into the dull room full of dust, and greeted by the Hokage of Konoha.

" Welcome, before you all congratulate yourselves on passing to the third exam, you must wait. For there are still too many people to participate in the final round which is the tournament. However, we will have a preliminary tournament to reduce the crowd once more by half. Then there will be enough people. The computer will randomly select two fighters to battle each other. The victorious one will advance to the actual tournament of the final test to the Chunnin exam. But before we begin, is there anybody who wishes to quit?"

With all this information, every gennin was stunned. One gennin asked, " We have to fight in this condition?" However the answer was obvious.

There was one gennin who raised his hand, he had silver hair that was tied up in a pony tail and circular glasses. He then left the crowd followed by his two teammates.

" Now let us begin. I, as Hokage, will introduce you to the referee during the battle. I am proud to present, Jounin Gekkou Hayate."

The Jounin named Hayate stepped up in place of the Hokage and said, " Alright, now here's how it goes. Just defeat you opponent. I will decide if they are done or not. You stop when they are unconscious or dead. However, I will stop you if you go too far. Good luck. The first fight we have is, Akimichi Chouji vs. Dosu Kinuta!"

The man named Kinuta stepped up in the middle of the floor as all the other gennin moved up the stairs to the railing above. Chouji stayed behind and took the place opposite of Kinuta.

Chouji glared at his opponent with unbreakable determination. Once the battle had begun, Chouji charged at Dosu but missed as his opponent moved aside and pushed him to the ground. Chouji got up and rushed at his enemy again.

This time, Chouji didn't get a little push, he received a punch and two kicks which sent Chouji's fat body flying through the air. Above, Sakura was rooting for Chouji to win, but in her heart, she knew the poor teen didn't stand a chance. No matter how many times Chouji tried to beat Dosu, one way or the other, he would just end up on the floor getting up again.

" I'm tired of toying with you, I'm going to finish this in the next move." Dosu proclaimed.

" Then so am I!" Chouji shouted as he put his hands together shouting, " BAIKA NO JUTSU!"

Chouji rushed a Dosu once more attempting to punch his nose. Dosu simply moved out of the way as usual, however, Chouji whirled around and with his left leg, jammed his foot into Dosu's stomach causing him to vomit from the force, then fly backwards a few feet. As Dosu skidded across the ground, Chouji shouted, " I will now hit you with my meat tank!"

Chouji then grew in size, as if he were being quickly inflated like a perfectly round balloon. All five of his limbs however, stayed at regular size. Once Chouji reached a height of ten feet, he took his five limbs and retracted them inside his body, now forming a perfect and humongous sphere. Dosu got up and saw the huge ball rolling toward him swiftly. He jumped out of the way leading Chouji to ram into the wall. He was immediately uninflated and fell unconscious from the force.

Hayate lifted his arm to his left and said, " Winner, Dosu Kinuta! Next match…" He paused to look back at the big screen on the wall to see who was next to fight. " Chishou Otinoro vs. Chishou Otinara!"

-Oh boy, this is awkward- Naruto thought as he scratched his head. Both his fake teammates had been called up to face each other. So they walked casually toward the middle of the floor. -Hmm, who should I make win, will it be a close call, you know what, I'll just let them fight themselves.-

" Begin!" Hayate said as he jumped back to avoid being in between the two fighters. They both stood there staring blankly at each other.

-Well do something guys, fight! Fight until one of you is defeated!- Naruto shouted in his mind at his two made up teammates.

That was all they needed. The only problem was, they both had the same mind, so they would both do the same moves.

They both rushed at each other at the same time whipping out a kunai and slicing each other's belly. Blood gushed out from each other's stomachs and they both fell dead.

" WHAT NO! THAT'S UNFAIR, WHY DID MY TEAMMATES HAVE TO KILL EACHOTHER! NOW I HAVE NOBODY TO TALK TO!" Naruto shouted punching his fist into the wall. He sat down in embarrassment as all began to stare.

" Okay, that was weird, anyway, next match, um….Uchiha Sasuke vs. um….Sama Samasama!" Hayate said.

Naruto jumped from the rail and landed on the ground saying, " that's me!"

Sasuke did the same but without the introduction.

" Tell me, what do you know about my brother?" Sasuke demanded once again once the fight had started. Neither shinobi budged but just conversed for a while.

" As I said before, if you beat me I'll tell you. But I have to make it to the next round. So I'm sorry but I won't let you pass on. Your gonna stay a gennin as long as your fighting me." Naruto said. " But lucky for you, I'm gonna end this quickly for your sake."

Naruto reached into his first coat and pulled out a handful of tiny beads, each only the size of a rice grain. They were clear blue. " I've made this myself, it take me hours to forge even one, but I don't really want to fight much, so I'll just use up years of effort on you and finish the battle quick. Advice, don't fight it, you'll get hit more. You can't dodge it, I have really good aim, and, I can control them as they fly through the air."

Sasuke didn't wait for his opponent to say anymore, he charged at him straight forward pulling out a kunai in both hands.

Naruto threw the small blew beads at Sasuke who hit them full on. As soon as the first bead touched its target, it exploded into a small blue sphere made of chakra the size of a baseball. However, it was a chain reaction, each bead spread out all over Sasuke's body, and once being hit by the chakra sphere, exploded into one just like it.

Sasuke screamed in pain as the attack finished leaving shreds and rags of his clothes. Sasuke was bleeding badly, he was also unconscious. The battle was over, Naruto had won and he didn't even take a step.

" Winner, Sama Samasama!" Hayate said as he pointed to Naruto.

" Sasuke!" Sakura screamed as tears flew from her tear ducts. She rushed to Sasuke along with the other Jounin to pick up his unconscious body and rush him to the medical room.

" There's no doubt about it, Those were Rasengans, how did he get that move? There are only two people that I know of who can successfully pull that off. One of them is dead." The Hokage whispered to himself.

" Next battle, Rock Lee vs. Temari!" Hayate shouted as Naruto went up the stairs back to his place on the railway.

As Sasuke and Naruto, both shinobi jumped down from above. Lee was a weird guy who had a perfect mushroom haircut, thick eyebrows, and he wore a very unusual green outfit with bandages at his arms.

Temari was a pretty girl that had blonde hair, she also carried around a large fan to fight. Lee sunk his head in sadness for having to fight a girl, this only made Temari enraged and encouraged at the same time. Although she did not show it, Temari was furious.

" Hn! We'll soon see who's the girl here!" Temari said shifting into her fighting stance with her fan spread out in back of her.

Lee also moved into his stance with one arm behind his back and his back bended slightly backwards.

" Begin!" Hayate shouted and then jumped back as usual.

Lee rushed to the right ready to curve slowly towards his opponent. Temari, however, didn't want to be even close to the black-haired freak, with one wave of her fan, Lee was sent back flying into the wall. However, he stood up quickly and tried again, this time jumping over the gust of wind heading toward him. Once he landed, Temari tried to blow him away once more, however, Lee crouched to the floor and rolled six turns barely out of the way of the air pressure. He was quickly gaining feet closing in on his opponent.

However, Lee wasn't the only one who could move, as soon as Lee finally reached Temari, he jumped up and twisted around swinging his right leg across towards Temari's head. She ducked and scarcely avoided the flying and twirling kick to her face. Instead it just brushed the tips of her pony tail. But Lee wasn't done, once he saw that his attack was going to be dodged, still in the air, he brought his left leg swinging upwards into Temari's chin sending her sliding across the smooth gray tile.

Temari got up and flapped her huge fan over and over swiftly towards Lee. Lee managed to evade the first couple gusts of wind, however, soon enough, he was being blown all over the room from wall to wall, and his opponent controlled where he went. But finally Lee was able to take advantage of this chance by pressing off against a wall with his two legs and gliding straight toward Temari like a bullet. Temari wasn't able to react as quickly so she was kicked in the stomach with an incredible force. Lee's foot jammed into Temari's belly causing her to spew blood from her mouth.

She fell on her knees and hands looking at her puddle of blood spreading rapidly across the a tile. She got up and grabbed her fan once more, after wiping the blood from her lip she said, " Good fighting. I never expected you to be this good."

Lee was panting holding his knees when he replied, " Thank you very much. But you've managed to tire me out ramming me from wall to wall. That hurt you know, but I'm not going to give up. Even though I can't use any ninjutsu or Genjutsu attacks."

Temari smiled at this comment. " Really?"

She then jumped high into the air and when she was at least twenty feet high, she spread her fan out once again and glided around the room. Occasionally she would swoop down and deliver a Taijutsu blow to Lee. Then she would go back up high into the air where Lee couldn't reach her.

" Your mistaken if you think you can win that way!" Lee shouted. He climbed the large statue and stood on the head, standing level with his opponent. Under his orange clothing over his shins, were weights. It became clear once he removed them. He held them out in each hand and dropped them.

The clash was catastrophic causing holes in the ground shattering the tiles easily and reshaping the landform. Temari as well as many other people widened their eyes in bewilderment. " I'm coming." Lee said as he disappeared into the air and reappeared right next to Temari kicking her and knocking her off her fan, and on to the tiles twenty feet below, knocking her out.

" He's teleported!" Naruto said surprised.

A man that looked just like Lee except older said, " He didn't teleport, he's just that fast!"

" Impossible…" Naruto said.

" Winner, Rock Lee!" Hayate said. Lee jumped up for joy and then carried Temari to where she was standing on the railing and placed her lightly on the ground.

Her fan was also with her.

" Next battle, Gaara vs. Abumi Zaku!"

Gaara was the person who had finished before Naruto, he was also in the same team with Temari. He carried a large gourd on his back. He had red hair, and a red Japanese symbol tattooed just above his left eyebrow. He disappeared within the sand surrounding him and appeared on the gray floor using the same sand to move from one place to the other. Zaku jumped down from the rail, as confident as ever.

The match was over in less than five seconds. Basically, before Zaku could defend himself, he was crushed by the sand that overwhelmed him.

The next battles were exciting to watch, but Naruto appeared stronger than all of them. Finally after the preliminaries were over, the Hokage congratulated the remaining gennin and showed them the list of who was to fight who during the Chunnin exam. Naruto didn't even need to see it, he already knew exactly who he was fighting, the demon vessel, the person that made his mission complete, Gaara of the Sand.

" Go and train for one month, come back to participate in the final round where you will fight in front of thousands of people!" The Hokage said smiling.

Everybody in the room gulped. But they were relieved, the worst was over, for now. They all went home to their families as Naruto left Konoha to return back to base…

A/N: Thanks for reading and please tell me what I could do to make this story interesting I'm up for anything, flames even. Just tell me how to make my story better to U. anyway I'm starting school now so wish me luck as a fishee in HS so I won't have that much spare time. Anyway I gotta go now and I hope you all enjoyed this chapter.


	3. Weapon part 2

A/N: the author's note will usually be at the end unless I have something I must mention before you read the story. This is the last part of this chapter and sorry that this took so long but I've been pretty swamped w/ lot's and lot's of projects and homework (I mean It's barely the first week of school, I got to catch a break and enjoy doing my hobby instead of doing something like studying or finishing my homework and projects. So, I escaped for quite a few hours and I'm really distressed since I lost my geometry book and all that and I have so much math to do not to mention…..nvm! Anyway, I don't want to put anything in parenthesis anymore and I don't want to make this author's note any longer so I'll end it.).

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto

Weapon part 2

" It's fine really, I petrified him. It should take his henchmen weeks to cure him and that's if Konoha doesn't find them first. Wow, my mission is pretty easy, however, I've already located the demon vessel, he shouldn't be much of a problem with someone like me." Naruto reassured the Akutsuki members at the base who he liked to call "family".

However, the Akutsuki members were not reassured. " That is unacceptable Naruto, we must dispose of that filthy piece of waste immediately. However, why did he attack you in the middle of the chunnin exams? Orochimaru is smarter than that, he knew how we would react, yet he kept on…" Itachi said concerned.

Naruto grinned, saying, " Oh, Itachi-san, I had no idea you loved me so much!"

The other Akutsuki members sniggered as Itachi shot them down with an evil glare.

" Ok, ok, ok. Look, me and Fishy-san will go and get rid of him, how's that?" Naruto asked Itachi placing his left hand on his blue friend's right shoulder.

Kisame growled and quickly pulled away from Naruto's hand. " STOP CALLING ME THAT, I SWEAR I'LL KILL YOU!"

Naruto jumped back and shouted running off in the distance, " fishy, fishy, fishy!"

Before Kisame could take a single step towards his blonde prey, Itachi then said, " Kisame, you know what to do, get rid of him, and don't get caught. Also, Naruto will accompany you, it'll be better for him to feel some fresh blood."

" I don't think he'll want to," Kisame said questionably.

" He doesn't have a choice, he must kill eventually, better start now, it's his side mission tell him." Itachi said harshly then walking off into the darkness of the cave along with the other seven Akutsuki members.

Naruto hopped from tree to tree playfully knocking the fifty feet tall trunks to the ground as he went.

Kisame was soon right behind him grabbing Naruto by his cloak. " Let me go blueby!"

" Don't call me that! Naruto, how many times do I have to tell you, you are like a kid! Grow up, your part of the Akutsuki now, learn to be one." Kisame ruthlessly.

Naruto dropped his head in shame and apologized. Then the blonde shinobi and the fish-like man dashed off reaching deeper and deeper within the forest.

" Kisame-san? Um…do you know how I was found?" Naruto asked questioning his blurry past. " I can't really remember anything, all I remember, is waking up and I was three and I started my training the next day."

" Itachi found you, then he brought you back. THAT'S ALL, NOTHING ELSE HAPPENED!" Kisame shouted obviously hiding something.

" Gosh, whenever I try to go there, everybody says the same thing. I want to know what happened, wouldn't you want to know about your past?" Naruto said sadly.

" Look Naruto, don't get all mushy on me, it really won't work, we're all S-rank criminals, we don't have time for chitchat, we must think up a plan, and carry it out. We have to consider the limitless possibilities of what will go down today. Stay low, we can't get caught by Konoha, or else we're dead rats." Kisame said changing the subject so Naruto would forget about it.

But Naruto persisted, " But Fishy-san, I just want to know why everyone is like that? Why do we need the demon vessels anyway?"

The two shinobi came to an abrupt halt standing an a large branch sixty feet up. " Just get over it kid! Clear your mind, because if you don't, then your going to have trouble fighting today. Also, you've got to make the kill, it's your assignment for this particular side-mission."

" But.."

" No buts, I'm sick and tired of you not wanting to kill anyone. We all put our time and effort into training your sorry butt for ten years, and all you can do to repay us is say you don't want to kill? Be reasonable Naruto, think of others, your not going to let your whole life have gone to waste are you?"

" So that's what I am? Some kind of tool, some kind of weapon? So you can use me whenever you like? I'm sick and tired of you all ordering me to things for you! If you want to kill him, why can't you kill him yourself?" Naruto said angrily waving his arms in the air to demonstrate his frustration.

" This is the life you chose, you will follow by-"

" I DIDN'T CHOOSE ANYTHING!" Naruto shouted in his friend's face. " I never asked to be trained, all of a sudden, I wake up and you train me to kill? I never asked for any of this."

Kisame still had something to say, " Oh yeah? Well who was the one begging for their first real mission because all the others were no challenge? Let me see, oh yeah, IT WAS YOU NARUTO, YOU! NOW IF YOU DON'T LIKE IT, TOUGH, DEAL WITH IT! WE'VE GOT A JOB TO DO AND WE'RE GOING TO DO IT! NOW LET'S GO!"

Naruto rubbed his eyes before continuing, being careful not to show how hurt he was to Fishy-san. Who was he? Why was he trained all of a sudden? He needed to know his past. He had to find out. There was only one thing to do for now, complete the mission, carry it out, and that was exactly what Naruto was going to do. He was going to KILL Orochimaru.

-----

" So this is it huh?" Kisame said softly crouching slightly observing his surroundings.

" Yup, and this is the dragon i summoned, which he was trapped in." Naruto said standing tall with both hands on his hips. " I got him alright."

" Don't get too proud, he escaped Mr. Expert." Kisame said concerned.

" What?" Naruto screeched, his loud obnoxious voice echoing throughout the forest. Realizing what he had done, Naruto cupped his hands over his mouth and received Kisame's scolding.

After the small incident, Kisame pointed at the dragon's jaw, " look at this, Orochimaru is smart Naruto. He wouldn't fall for such an easy trick. He escaped right under your fingers and you didn't even notice. The jaw, the jaw was closed shut when you tried to petrify the dragon. However, you took no notice whether if it was open or closed. That's why he was able to get away. He dislocated the jaw and switched himself with this." Kisame then placed his right index finger on the petrified tree trunk inside the mouth of the dragon. " That's why, this was a trap. You were careless Naruto, and now, Orochimaru has us right in his grasps."

Naruto could hear the demented laugh above him and his ally. They both looked up, to see exactly who they were expecting, Orochimaru.

" A very smart observation Kisame-san." Orochimaru said with a devious smile. " Unfortunately for you, I knew they would send only two of you. Which is why I came prepared."

At that last sentence, shinobi appeared all around the two Akutsuki members and surrounded them, outnumbering them two-hundred to two.

" What are you smiling about Naruto?" Kisame asked angrily and nervously at the same time.

" Because, I know…for a fact, that we can take them. You sound pretty nervous Fishy-san, that's a first!" Naruto said with a grin as he whirled out a kunai twirling it with his middle finger. He stopped it grasping the bandaged handle leaving the blade facing down.

" Ha, ha, ha, ha! You amuse me Naruto-kun. This will be fun. One last chance," Orochimaru said leaving small room for a hopeful answer.

" I told you Oro, you can't grant me what I want. Do you know what that is?" Naruto asked still keeping his wide grin from ear to ear showing his white, gleaming teeth.

" And what is that?"

" I'll tell you what it is, power. Power Oro-sama. Now, shall we get that started?" Naruto said raising his kunai towards his snake-like enemy.

" Very well, if that is your choice, I suppose I will give you the inevitable much more earlier than I had hoped, Death." Orochimaru said with the same scheming smile.

" Naruto." Kisame said as he clutched his hands together forming the first seal of the combination.

That was all Naruto needed to understand. " Got it!" He shouted as he rushed off to fight the five sound shinobi rushing toward them.

After Kisame had finished completing the series of hand seals, he shouted, " Doshaburi No Jutsu!"

Within five seconds, the sky grew dark, the wind grew harsh, and the whistling sound of death filled the air as pouring rain fell from the darkness above. The water rushed down the tree branches and poured all over the ground getting everybody soaked beyond measure. It only got worse, severe winds carried not the small raindrops but the gallons of water and spreading it all over the forest like a plague throughout the land.

It was almost impossible to breathe for there was downpour everywhere. Shinobi were now fighting blindly, all the shinobi, except Kisame and Naruto. They were built for this, trained especially for the weather.

" NOW!" Kisame shouted to Naruto as both of them quickly formed a few hand seals shouting in unison.

" Mizu Bunshin No Jutsu!" Suddenly, hundreds of water clones appeared forming out of the deep puddles that were created during the storm. Now the odds were even!

The battle was catastrophic beyond measure. Every sound nin were being slaughtered at each point they stood. Occasionally a water clone would be defeated only to be recreated once more out of the flood that had now brewed. The water surrounded the forest and was even 4 feet deep in some parts on the ground. However, Orochimaru was helping his side by a lot. He was taking on Naruto and Kisame both at the same time. The battle wasn't looking very good for either of the sides. If the rain kept pouring and the wind kept blowing, then Konoha ANBU would soon arrive.

" You have improved Naruto!" Orochimaru said under his evil grin. He quickly stooped down low and cut Kisame's left ankle tendon as the blue shinobi rushed toward him. Kisame fell to the ground at Orochimaru's feet.

" FISHY-SAN!" Naruto shouted as he formed a chain of hand seals and then said holding out his right arm, " Daija futoiude!"

From under his Akutsuki sleeve formed a large snake from Naruto's arm. It extended not toward Orochimaru but Kisame. It hastily curled around his flat body and retracted back to Naruto bringing Fishy-San along. The extended snake uncurled from Kisame's body and transformed back into naruto human arm.

Kisame lay on the ground clutching his ankle trying to stop the blood from pouring out.

Orochimaru smiled then licked his purple lips saying, " Looks like your in need of a little help."

" So are you!" Kisame said as he appeared from behind Orochimaru and tore out his throat with a kunai. The Kisame lying at Naruto's feet turned into water to join the flood.

Orochimaru fell to the ground with such a large gap in his neck. Kisame kicked the limp body and threw down Orochimaru's esophagus.

" Let's go Naruto, our work is finished here." Kisame said as the sky cleared up to reveal a bright sun already doing it's job of drying the land and shedding light throughout the nation. " The ANBU will be here shortly!"

The two Akutsuki members left the forest and went back to the Akutsuki base. However, there was one drop of water that the sun did not dry up, and it lie, on Naruto's right arm…

**Chunnin Exam Day**

Naruto entered the stadium floor and took his place next to the other gennin. He did not wear his cloak this time but normal Shinobi uniform, much like the one Kakashi always wore.

Naruto looked to his right straight into his opponents eyes who gave him a murderous glare. The deathly stares were broken when Neji came to sit in between them.

After the Chunnin exam stadium filled up, the final test began starting with the match of Lee and Neji.

" I bring you sadness Lee, for you cannot beat me. Your loss was determined the moment you were picked to be my opponent." Neji said as he shifted into his stance bring on arm down low and the other up high into the air.

Lee altered his position into his fighting stance as well. " Neji-san, I bring you, a genius of hard work."

The match had started, and Lee was off into the air behind Neji even before Neji could make a move. Lee twisted his body a full 360 degrees and gave a good sidekick to Neji's head sending him flying into a nearby bush. Neji got up as Lee shouted, " Tekken No Jutsu!"

Blue chakra surrounded Lee as he rushed at Neji at an even faster speed charging the Hyugga with his shoulder. Again, Neji had no time to react therefore, causing him to fly into the stadium wall causing bits of rubble to fall.

Neji once more stood up this time grasping his stomach in pain and then spewing out blood from his mouth and nose.

Lee slowly walked towards Neji until he was in rage of Neji's new attack, the Hakke Rokujuyon Sho technique. Neji shouted his new found technique rushing at Lee hitting him with two fingers blocking his chakra holes. The surrounding chakra around Lee faded as Lee lye on the ground in pain.

" You've made a mistake Neji-san. You must've forgot, I don't use Chakra!" Lee shouted as he rushed at Neji at a normal speed.

" Hakkesho Kaiten!" Lee tried to stop himself at that point from rushing forward, but it was too late. Neji spun around creating a chakra barrier that was used in an offense and defense way. Lee soared through the air like a dashing bullet skidding across the grass causing dirt to rise.

-Wow, they're weak!- Naruto thought. As he slumped down lazily and closed his eyes for a brief moment.

The earsplitting sound of Naruto's fake name awoke him. Naruto looked around and saw that most of the battles had gone by. There were winners on one side, and some losers still stood, but some of them were in the emergency room. Naruto looked down into the field and saw that his opponent was waiting for him stand straight with his arms crossed.

" Whoa, how long was I out?" Naruto asked himself. Unfortunately, he got no answer so he jumped down to the battlefield to face his opponent.

When the battle began Naruto spoke in a voice so that only his opponent could hear him, " Listen up demon! I don't care what your reasons are for this, but you will not win. The chunnin exam ends here. I'm taking you. You can either cooperate, or-"

However Naruto was cut off as a bunch of sand from the gourd on Gaara's back charge at him quickly. Naruto barely managed to dodge however his hand was caught and wrapped around in the process. The sand then managed to crawl up Naruto's left arm from where it had caught his hand.

Naruto whipped out a kunai and managed to slash at the incoming sand. His opponent stuck his hand out and clenched it creating the sand to squeeze Naruto's hand and forearm, breaking all those bones. Naruto screamed in pain as the sand left his arm and regrouped with the other sand inside the gourd. Naruto could see that with one arm broken, this was not going to be an easy task. " Your lucky we need you!" He shouted for all to hear.

However, Naruto didn't care, he rushed at Gaara dodging the incoming sand. However his fierce punch was blocked by a sand shield right before Naruto could hit him. He dashed away trying to figure out a way to defeat his opponent.

-I can't really use any Genjutsu or Ninjutsu because I have one useless hand. I'm going to have use only Taijutsu with three limbs. But he does have a shield, how could I do this?- Meanwhile sand was unnoticeably building up in size behind Naruto.

Naruto finally noticed once he was in the shade of the sand. But it was too late. The stadium watched in horror as the sand built over Naruto and crushed him beneath the waves. A cloud of dirt rose and filled the air and blinded the stadium from even the simplest glimpse.

Finally, when the dirt rose and cleared, the air was clean again and free to breath. The audience looked back down into the stadium, what they found was a blonde kid. That blonde kid was standing over Gaara who was now unconscious. Gaara had cracks in his skin and had an unconscious face of pain. He lay at Naruto's feet who was looking down full of sand all over his clothes and face.

The audience was now confused at the sight they now witnessed. They needed an explanation. That was exactly what they got.

" He broke my arm, giving me a very big disadvantage not being able to use any ninjutsu or Genjutsu. So, I had to act fast. It wasn't until later that I realized that the sand was above me. However, I noticed just in time because if I hadn't moved, not only would my arms be broken, but my whole body would be too. Yes, he crushed my other arm which left me at an even bigger disadvantage."

The Hokage stood up, finally figuring out the occurring events. He pointed at Naruto and shouted, " Seize him!"

Shinobi from all places in the stadium jumped down and rushed at Naruto. Naruto slipped his right foot under Gaara, kicked him up approximately 50 feet into the air, and jumped up after him then carrying the unconscious demon on his shoulders.

He then leaped to a seat in the stadium continuing his explanation on how he beat his opponent without any arms while dodging Konoha shinobi left and right.

Constantly moving from place to place, Naruto said, " So then I finally was out and undetected within the rising dirt. So nobody could see, and neither could Gaara, which gave me the opportunity. I jumped over him and gave a hard kick to the top, crushing the sand shield beneath my foot. My foot followed through and kicked his head knocking him out. And that's my brilliant victory. Now, I'll have to get back to base and take Gaara with me. I'll see you all!"

But before naruto could jump, Kakashi, the Hokage, Asuma, Kankurou, and Temari jumped and surrounded him.

" Oh shoot." Naruto sighed. " This is going to be a LOT of trouble especially since I have to carry this red-head freak on my shoulders and I have no arms to use. No, I can't fail my first mission!"

" Who are you working for?" Kakashi asked demanding an answer.

" I won't tell you anything! Let's get this started!" Naruto shouted as he jumped up carrying his opponent. The five shinobi jumped up after him each forming hand seals quickly.

Naruto swiftly moved backwards and gave a powerful kick to Temari's head which then clashed with her sibling's head, Kankurou. That kick both took them down and Naruto continued his run out of the stadium with two Jounin and one Hokage after him.

_Poof_! There was an unexpected person standing ready to meet Naruto as he ran, Orochimaru.

" I killed you!" Naruto shouted as Orochimaru's punch connected with Naruto's face sending him flying back a few meters.

" Orochimaru!" The Hokage shouted as he prepared to fight the snake like Sannin.

" Relax old man! I've got a debt to pay…" But still, nobody bought it considering all the past times that Orochimaru had betrayed Konoha. But Orochimaru paid no attention to that fact and continued to rush at Naruto.

Naruto was able to dodge every single one of everybody's hits, however, he didn't have any time to look around to see where Gaara was nor try to hit anybody back. He was at a HUGE disadvantage and in a few more minutes, he would be history. He had to do something, and fast! Time was running out and so was his energy. Every minute a new shinobi would jump in to help the battle, which would then only make Naruto work harder and faster, each second exhausted Naruto more and more.

Soon enough, just like he predicted, his movements had started to slow down and he was now getting hit here and there. The battle would soon be over.

BAM! Kakashi gave an overwhelming blow to Naruto's chest which made Naruto fly into the stadium wall, crushing the metal behind him. He lay on the floor too exhausted and hurt to stand up and defend himself. He couldn't breathe and had a devastating pain inside his chest.

He lay there looking at the small white clouds with his azure melancholy eyes for a split second. Then a sudden thought crossed his mind which would have an impact so great, it would change history. Naruto could see that this wasn't the life he wanted, he wanted to be your average day normal shinobi and to be able to have free time. He wanted a peaceful life not a dangerous one. He never got to make his own decisions before, his first mission, his arms were broken, he couldn't breathe well, and he was probably going to die. He didn't want this to happen. He wanted to know about his past, where he went wrong, what he did, why he had the life he has now. He wanted so many answers to so many questions.

Answers needed time, and that was exactly the thing Naruto didn't have. TIME.

Then, the world around him seemed to drown with silence, slowly, before he went completely deaf, he could hear screaming and shouting. Yelling and blood splattering against the floor. But all he could see was the small white clouds, so peaceful…..

OMGosh I'm so sorry this took so long but I can only work on Fridays cuz I got TUNS of homework everyday. But I finally finished it and I will definatly try to make the next one cum out sooner than it took for this one. The first author's note in the beginning of the story was three weeks ago! Also, please tell me how I could improve my story and what u think would be cool if it happened. Thank you and until next time.


	4. Interrogation

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

A/N: hopefully u enjoy this chapter, tell me how u like it, give me some advice please.

Chapter four: Interrogation

"….where am I?" Naruto thought to himself as he slowly looked around the dim-lighted room he was in. One of his first thoughts were to pinpoint the exits, which he did quickly enough.

Suddenly, Naruto heard a loud noise coming from behind him. He whirled around to see that somebody was coming in from a metallic door. _BANG_! The dark figure shut the door and slowly approached Naruto appearing into the light.

" Who are you!" Naruto shouted as he jumped up, ready to fight.

" I'm not here to fight Naruto. I'm just here to talk." The man said holding out a hand resembling peace.

Naruto, easily convinced, sat down and made himself comfortable sitting straight in his chair. " what is it you come for then? And where am I? What happened? I thought I would be hurt right now, I mean, with all the injuries I've had, and how do you know my name? It's not Naruto, it's Samasama Sama!"

" Calm down Naruto, we'll get to that soon enough. First of all, my name is Morino Ibiki. You've recovered from your injuries because you've been asleep for a few months now. You have healed fast. You are here in Konoha, your mission was a failed attempt even after the Akatsuki tried to come and clean up the mess you did. I-"

" Where are they!" Naruto shouted frowning, fearing the worst.

Ibiki looked sad a moment, then spoke, " I'm sorry to tell you this Naruto, but by wasting so much time explaining how you beat Gaara, we called enough ANBU members to defeat the Akatsuki members who had come in to rescue you. They are now dead, there is nothing else left of your clan, or home. We followed one person back to their base and attacked them there. It was a fierce battle, but we still had the element of surprise. I'm very sorry. But I've come here today to offer you a proposition, the village of Konoha has decided to give you a second chance at a better life. We can let you free with few restrictions, and your life can be normal. How does that sound?"

Naruto was in shock for hearing the words explaining that all the people he had ever known, who he cared about, were gone, banished from the face of the earth, never to see him again. " That's impossible….." Naruto muttered as a drop of water fell from his eyes.

" What if I refuse your offer?" Naruto said getting back on track.

" Then you will be sentenced to death, you're able to join the Akatsuki if you'd like. They're gone, you're going to have to face that fact. But you aren't, you have to understand that you still have a chance at life, you'll be a teen shinobi with very strong powers. Konoha is willing to promote you to Jounin, even though in reality, you're not even a gennin yet. It's your choice, die by the knife at the throat, or live and start anew."

"……….." Naruto was silent for a moment, then spoke in a raspy voice saying, " I'll live…"

" Wise choice young man. But before we do anything, we would like to ask you a few questions to see where u stand at your current mental state, what you've been through, what you can endure, therefore that way we can match you with the most suitable lifestyle especially for you."

Naruto smiled, his hopes shot way up. He hadn't trained with the Akatsuki for thirteen years for nothing. " So basically what you are saying is: that you are actually interrogating me so that you can find out as much as you can about the Akatsuki by telling me that they are already dead when in reality they aren't. But you think that by using me, you can find out some valuable information that would be useless if they were dead, but since they aren't you might be able to use it against them. And, since you are offering me a second chance to correct the wrongs I have done, then there is a high probable chance that you fear my powers and what I am capable of so you try to keep me under your control. So if I were to have fallen into your trap, then you might have had Akatsuki wiped out and me not posing as a threat but as an ally."

The man called Morino Ibiki was speechless, staring blankly at the blonde teenager capable of incredible things.

" What do you expect? Don't be so surprised. I didn't just physically train with the Akatsuki all my life, they mentally prepared me for the worst as well. Plus, even had all you said been true, I still wouldn't have told you anyway, I was taught not to, the hard way. So what now? I suspect you're not going to let me go willingly. So I guess I'll have to let myself out by any means possible."

Naruto stood up followed by Ibiki. He blocked the only reasonable exit in Naruto's way. " Do you think what you are doing wise? I do keep mentioning that I've been training with the Akatsuki all my life haven't I?"

" More than once." Ibiki said smiling. " But I would put my life at stake to protect the village of Konoha and delay you from passing. Don't think I won't be a challenge!"

" I suppose then there is no other way…" Naruto said with a sigh as he prepared to fight.

" Danchaku Hakuryokumanten!" Ibiki shouted as he pulled back his arm clenching a fist full of black chakra. The chakra slowly circled and overwhelmed Ibiki's whole left arm. " RELEASE!" Ibiki screamed as his left arm shot out faster than anything Naruto had ever seen. Naruto barely had time to block the attack.

When the fist hit Naruto's arms in front of him, Naruto thought he was safe from the attack, that was until the black chakra shot out and left Ibiki's arm, piercing Naruto's chest sending him flying through the air and into the wall, destroying it with the impact.

Naruto slowly picked himself up clutching his chest coughing large amounts of blood. But before he was able to straighten his knees, Ibiki rushed toward him with another fist full of black chakra shouting, " DON'T THINK I'M GOING TO GIVE TIME TO REJUVINATE ONE SECOND!"

**_BAM_**! Naruto had no chance to block, so the fist went straight into his chest crushing six of his ribs and so did the black chakra again having a great impact after the blow. Naruto fell once more, except this time on his knees and hands coughing much more blood then last time. However, Morino Ibiki showed no mercy, he gave Naruto a kick to the neck straight back into the wall again crushing it even more. Again the fierce kick came with a force so powerful it caused Naruto to lose his breath over and over again.

" I won't have any more of this…" Naruto thought to himself feeling very agitated. The third kick to Naruto was caught. Naruto grasped Ibiki's legs and whirled him around threw him to the other wall.

" Payback! (cough!)" Naruto shouted, coughing up a little more blood.

" ha ha ha ha ha!" Ibiki said as he stood up. " You won't be able to last much longer Naruto. My special and secret technique is very effective. It slows down the function of every internal organ and also weakens all your muscles. When the punch connects, it does more damage slowing you down and making you almost to weak to move. It's a shame that nobody else was able to learn this technique."

" You mean this technique?" Naruto said smiling as he held his arm pulled back with black chakra surrounding it. " Yeah, I learned this move when I was five years old. I've learned to counter it. I've also improved it so that the overall damage is increased by ten times. Let me show you what it's capable of!"

Instead of clenching his fist, Naruto kept his hand open, with an open palm. On top of that, after much concentration, a bright lime green colored chakra mixed with the black chakra swirling around Naruto's arm as well. With those two modifications, Naruto ran toward Ibiki driving his open palm into Ibiki's face against the wall, almost crushing his skull. Ibiki lay practically unconscious at Naruto's feet with half of his face practically burned off.

" I've blinded your left eye, infact, I've paralyzed your whole left side of your face. The left side of your brain won't function as well anymore, but that's what you get for messing with me. My bones have already connected together again, and my organs and muscles are now functioning properly. I've perfected that jutsu. I countered the Jutsu you used on me, by using my own version of that jutsu that also heals me and does more damage, especially when inflicted to the head. Well, now that you're unconscious, I suppose I'm going to go now."

Naruto walked out of through the steel door and out into the open village of Konoha. Luckily, it was dark outside, everybody was fast asleep, dreaming cozily in their beds, all except for the ANBU hidden on the rooftops of tall buildings who were watching Naruto now.

" Little Akatsuki has left the building over." whispered one ANBU member to the others though the small radio he had in his hand. " Everybody fall in, over!"

Before Naruto could take his first steps toward the gate of Konoha, six ANBU members jumped down silently and surrounded Naruto.

Within seconds, Naruto had observed each ANBU member's fighting style just by their standing posture. He himself, prepared to fight. This wasn't going to be easy, but he would manage.

" Return to the building you were in or else we will be obligated to use direct force." A girl ANBU member said pulling out a kunai.

" Six of you? It'll take more than six to beat me." Naruto exclaimed half smiling. He found it completely ironic that fourteen more ANBU members had arrived just after he had made his comment.

" Go back into the building or we will attack!" A gray haired man stepped out from behind a building, he wore his Konoha head band over his left eye and a mask covering the bottom half of his face."

" Would you by any chance be…..Kakashi?" Naruto asked.

" Yes, how would you know?" The man named Kakashi said.

" I've heard of you, a legend. They say you've copied over one-thousand moves. I'm honored to have actually met you. Will you duel with me?" Naruto asked half bowing.

" That depends, if you can get passed all these ANBU members here, then I guess I'll have to jump in and stop you."

" Very well." Naruto said already dashing to the right bashing one ANBU member's skull into the concrete, crushing it with bare force. The battle was brutal, Naruto had never been in a more bloody fight. His Akatsuki robes were stained with the color of blood, he had the red liquid all over his face and hands. It was truly a massacre. Naruto hardly got injured, only a slight cut to the arm and he had taken everybody but the opponent he wanted to fight left, Kakashi.

When Naruto had finished the job, he turned to Kakashi and asked, " Ready?"

"….I….I cannot believe that I just stood there and let the people of this village die…This is not the me I know. I'm ready, prepare Akatsuki member, I will come at full force." As he said this, Kakashi pulled up his Konoha headband from his eye to reveal the Sharingan eye.

" Then let's go!" Naruto shouted dashing at him. Right before Naruto was in range of Kakashi's arms, he jumped up into the air throwing kunai's at his opponent.

_Poof_! The bunshin disappeared and the real Kakashi reappeared behind Naruto while in the air. " Kokushibyou No Jutsu!" Kakashi grabbed Naruto's arm and Naruto managed to pull away within less than half a second. But it was too late, the Jutsu was already taking its toll. Naruto felt sleepy, he felt tired, he felt too weak to do anything. His skin started turning pale and dry. He became fragile and hit the ground hard. His breathing became tense, and his heartbeat became slow. Naruto lay there still, and inch from death, he lay there, while Kakashi prepared his next jutsu.

" CHIDORI!" Kakashi shouted as blue lightning flashed from Kakashi's right hand. Constant bolts of lightning surrounded what seemed to be a ball of electricity in his hand. He dashed toward Naruto's fragile body and drove the blue lightning through his chest….

_Poof_! Naruto's clone disappeared with a poof of smoke and the real Naruto jumped from under the ground jamming his fist into the bottom of Kakashi's chin. Kakashi was immediately dropped to the ground but stood back up again.

" Impressive. You and I, we are alike in many ways," Naruto began. " We are both skilled shinobi, fighting for what we think is right, and like you, I can copy abilities too. For instance,"

A clone of Naruto appeared behind Kakashi instantly and touch his face finishing the sentence the real Naruto was saying, " The plague jutsu you gave me. It works pretty good, but it consumes a lot of chakra doesn't it? Hmmmm…..A worthy opponent you are. But I'm sorry that I have to end this now. RASENGAN!"

A great blue ball of shining, swirling chakra formed in Naruto's right hand as he dashed at the dying Kakashi, too weak to move. However, Naruto did not get to finish his opponent off. Just before the Rasengan hit Kakashi, a big-breasted lady appeared out of nowhere holding Naruto's wrist preventing him from going anywhere. The Rasengan disappeared after the lady slammed her fist into Naruto's face sending him into another building through the walls of bricks. He came back out again to face his new opponent.

" Hey! What are you doing in my village? Your causing trouble! Lot's of it too." The lady said. She had blond hair and wore a green cloak that had the word "luck" on the back.

" I don't have time to play, I need to get back. However, I suppose I could finish off one other person." naruto said groaning and reaching into his cloak, pulling out the exact same beads he had used on Sasuke during the Preliminaries.

" You won't get passed me kid. The name's Tsunade, remember it."

" The name's not kid, it's Naruto…" Naruto said exposing his true identity although some people knew. He threw the handful of beads as they exploded into Rasengans.

The lady however, appeared behind him.

" I'm right here." and with that, she flicked him in the back of his head and he went flying into another building crashing through the wall. Naruto came out and wiped the small line of blood coming down from his lip.

He smiled and said, " wow, who might you be? How did u get so strong?"

Tsunade put both her hands on her hips as she shouted, " I am one of the three Sannin, as well as the Hokage of this village! You must know of Orochimaru, my strength is the same as him!" Suddenly, many ANBU appeared from the rooftops and jumped down to surround Naruto.

" I suppose it doesn't really look like I can win this one…hmmmmmm….." Naruto said looking around him. He knew there was no way he could win, Orochimaru was already better than Naruto by himself, and if Tsunade wasn't bluffing, then he could not take on her AND all the ANBU members. " What do you want me to do?"

"Ha! There is nothing you can do, you've already chosen a life that leads to nowhere, a dead end. You are already sentenced to death, this is your last fight, Naruto-Kun."

" Well I can't possibly let that happen, now can I?" Naruto said without a worry in his voice. He thought hard for a few seconds and came up with his plan. " I've got it. Well, looks like everybody's ready huh?" He stood straight up, took a deep breath, and got ready to fight.

Naruto jumped into the air and dashed toward Kakashi's dying body and shouted, " But first I got to finish what I started!"

Just before Naruto attempted to drive his Kunai into Kakashi's limp body, he hard _Tsssssssssss!_ **BOOM!** Kakashi's body blew up in Naruto's face sending him flying back in the air. The real Kakashi appeared in a whole in the ground. " Tell me one thing before you die Naruto. How did you manage to copy my abilities?"

Naruto stood up and brushed off what he could of his burned Akatsuki cloak. He now had only pants, and bandages covering his upper body instead of a shirt. " Well, during my training with the Akatsuki, Itachi taught me how to copy moves without the Sharingan. It seemed almost impossible at first, but the more moves I learned, the easier it became, I started copying many other Jutsu's in previous battles. All you have to do, is figure out the hand seals, and then, guess where and how much the chakra flow is and is going. Then if you get it right, you have the technique. I've practiced so much guessing, that I already know and don't need to guess."

" Impressive. But now all that talent is going to be wasted…" Kakashi said scratching his chin.

" Well let's get this thing started! Kage Bunnshin No Jutsu!" Naruto shouted creating ten copy's of himself each of them going to fight at least five opponents at a time.

Within minutes, only one Naruto was left, again surrounded by ANBU, but this time, the amount was cut down by half. Naruto was tired and all scratched up.

" There is nothing to do except kill you now, it is for the better of everyone." Tsunade said rushing at Naruto. One punch and that was the end….for the Bunnshin.

_Poof_! The clone disappeared and Naruto was nowhere to be seen. Everybody looked around to see if they could spot the blonde teenager somewhere, but they couldn't.

" Damn it!" Tsunade shouted stomping her foot and leaving her imprint on the stone ground. " He's headed out of Konoha. Awake all the Jounin and Chunnin, they are gong to have an S rank mission."

"…But, Tsunade-sama, all the Jounin and Chunnin are out on a mission, the only Chunnin that remains is-"

---

" YAWN…It really is too troublesome to go out, but I suppose since it's my duty I guess I have to go. Give me half an hour to assemble the team I need. Will Kakashi-dono be going?"

" Of course, somebody needs to be in charge, you have half an hour! Hurry, the sun is rising!" Tsunade said pointing a white finger at Shikamaru's forehead.

**Half An Hour Later**

" This is your team? Very well, the success rate of this mission is…..0000000000000000000000000000001 , You all may die, but good luck!" Tsunade said dismissing the seven Shinobi.

Before all of the seven people had the chance to leave the village, Sasuke stepped out and demanded, " I'm coming with you all, I have to aquire some information and i also have a debt to pay..."

Kakashi, Shikamaru, Chouji, Kiba, Shino, Lee, Sasuke, and Neji all left the Gates of Konoha towards the rising sun chasing the S-rank criminal as well as the Akatsuki member…

A/N: sorry it took me so long to make this, but the next one will be cool, it'll be all those ppl against ? Give me some things that you would like to happen. oh and thanx peter kim, this is now updated


	5. The Chase

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Chapter Five: The Chase

" Pakkun! Where to now?" Kakashi demanded of his little Pug that he had just summoned.

The brown dog sniffed in the air and walked Northeast a few feet. " This way!" They dashed off to catch up to the criminal they were pursuing.

---

Naruto was already exhausted from the previous fights he had just had. He needed someplace to rest, but he knew some people were pursuing him, there was no chance that Tsunade would let Naruto leave just like that. He needed to get rid of them, somehow, someway. His plan had been forming in his mind ever since he had left to the village. He was surprised that the village of Konoha had been fooled so easily, all he needed was a few bunshins and he escaped from sight distracting the others. He just disposed easily of the two shinobi guarding the gate.

- To the Northeast is…..The Yajuu Graveyard. Brilliant! However, do I have enough Chakra do go through with the plan? Hopefully…- Naruto thought to himself as he headed toward the Graveyard he was thinking about.

---

" Stop!" Pakkun shouted stopping to an abrupt halt.

" What is it Pakkun?" Kakashi asked curiously.

" Has it ever occurred to any of you at all where we are headed?" Pakkun asked seriously, however, the only answer he got back was confused as well as blank faces. They each looked at each other puzzled.

" We are headed for the Yajuu Graveyard!" Pakkun shouted jumping up and down.

" The Yajuu Graveyard? Oh yes, what's so bad about that?" Kakashi asked finally understanding what Pakkun was talking about.

" Don't you know the story? There once was a person beaten during his childhood, his name: Ada Bushi. He was raised poorly, however, he was a very tough person, determined to seek revenge on his parents who were shinobi as well. Each day they tortured him a different way, however, he held up, stayed alive, endured the pain. Each time he had, he would go away to his own little spot and train himself physically, while enduring the torture was training his mind mentally. At the age of fourteen, he murdered his parents, it was a massacre. Even though his parents were very skilled, he had overcome them. He continued his training for greater power even though he had reached his goal. Thirty years later, he had become such a great shinobi, that he had slaughtered thousands, challenging everybody who came in his path, not leaving a sole survivor. One day, he created a beast, a beast so big and powerful known as Burakku Kaibutsu! The monster became his loyal pet, destroying buildings and killing people with brute force. It began to feed on the one thing it loved killing, shinobi. They became a legend, they lived over 500 years ago."

The story left them bewildered. Lee mustered up the courage and asked, " How did they die?"

" Well, Bushi, got involved with the sand village, so he left to the village of Konoha and the Kazekage, as well as most of the shinobi in the sand village, followed him to execute him. It was a great battle, imagine, Bushi and Kaibutsu, against the sand village…It was a tie, there was only one survivor, a Gennin, yes even Gennin fought in that battle. The little boy found our village, and reported what had happened. They buried everybody underground where the battle had taken place. They also buried the great samurai and his beast separately in that graveyard. It became known as the Yajuu Graveyard."

" Well nothing's going to happen, we're just headed for a graveyard, that's all." Kakashi said giving hope back to the rest of the group.

" It's just a story!" Kiba shouted as they continued on, following Naruto.

When Pakkun had finally stopped, he lifted his head and sniffed the air. In a silent voice, he whispered, " He's here, where I said he was headed. I think it may be a trap."

" It doesn't matter, we must continue, this is our mission, we must be cautious." Kakashi said, leading the group through the black gates and into the dark foggy area.

The grave yard was HUGE, with gravestones everywhere, however, at the end of the graveyard, was a large hill. And on that hill lay a large gravestone with some encrypting on it.

When the full group had entered, the gate closed behind them, and Naruto appeared on top of the large tombstone with his arms out in the air, as if he were embracing the darkness.

" Come closer, my fellow shinobi, it is only I, Naruto!" Naruto shouted as the eight shinobi and one dog came nearer to their enemy cautiously.

" I have a surprise waiting, behold, my another perfected Jutsu, BOUTOU ANOYO NO JUTSU!" Naruto shouted lifting his hands up to the night sky, he jumped off of the gravestone as the ground shook below them.

The ground tore and ripped beneath the large tombstone, out emerged a monster so great, so huge, that it could swallow Kakashi whole. It came out angry and hungry, fur and skin deteriorated, the rotten smell spread throughout the graveyard.

" Still think it's just a story kid?" Pakkun asked to the shocked Kiba.

" But wait, there's more!" Naruto shouted with an evil grin, " RISE…ADA BUSHI!"

The great samurai warrior appeared from underneath the grave stone as well, he came out, looking disastrous, his golden armor was dull and stained with blood, his sword however, was still as sharp as ever, however, not as shiny.

" Well this might be a problem.. So troublesome.." Shikamaru said groaning.

Kakashi immediately starting shouting out orders, " Lee, Neji, Shino, and Sasuke, you four take on Bushi, Kiba, Chouji, Shikamaru, and I will take on the huge beast. Pakkun, get out of here!"

_Poof_! The dog disappeared and the eight shinobi all started following the demands they were given. All but one.

Sasuke, who had his eyes on Naruto the whole time, escaped from the scene and followed Naruto out of the graveyard, and left his teammates to fight on their own. He kept following Naruto, never stopped, looking back, worrying about his team, his village, what would happen next. He needed to know some things, and he needed to know now!

---

Lee jumped towards Bushi, legs forward aiming at the face with one foot, and the chest with the other. Bushi blocked it with his sword and pushed Lee back down to the ground, however, Lee didn't give up so easily, before he fell to the ground, he used his hand to whirl his body around as well as legs to trip his opponent.

Bushi saw this coming and did a double back flip landing behind Neji. Neji barely managed to dodge Bushi's blade's sideswipe and dashed forward to get away from him. Shino jumped into view over Bushi and thousands of bugs flew forward eating at Bushi's ripped flesh and bone. The mighty samurai was covered in the bugs, they were everywhere, even jamming his joints and armor.

But Bushi was too strong, he simply overpowered the thousands of bugs that covered him, and moved freely and easily, dashing towards Shino kicking him to a grave and leaving him unconscious.

" It's just you and me Neji-san, how can we take this great samurai on just by ourselves?" Lee asked Neji somewhat panicking.

" We will find a way, have faith Lee!" Neji shouted as he threw two kunai towards Bushi, he blocked them and continued towards the Hyugga. Lee interfered and attempted to give a sailing sidekick to Bushi's head, however, Bushi was once again to quick, he grabbed Lee's leg and whirled him around sending him to the ground.

" Lee!" Neji shouted rushing at Bushi himself. Neji's attacks were no good, his techniques were dodged by Bushi's hand alone. Whatever the two shinobi did, it was no use, it only tired them out, and Bushi hadn't even got hit once yet.

---

Meanwhile, four other shinobi had other problems to deal with as well: The beast. It rampaged through the forest destroying trees and such that were in its way. The four ninja's pursued it trying to attack it as it ran. No weapons had worked so far, but they all still had techniques up their sleeves.

" KAGEMANE NO JUTSU!" Shikamaru shouted as his shadow extended and emerged with the shadow of the beast's. The beast came to a direct stop and made no movements what so ever, however, Shikamaru was struggling holding the beast by himself. The beast would overcome his technique in a very short while, this gave the other shinobi time to do their techniques.

Shikamaru didn't need to inform them, they already knew they had very little time to complete their Jutsu's and do as much damage as possible to the beast.

" CHIDORI!" Kakashi screamed as he drove his hand holding a ball of blue lightning into the beast's skull. He quickly pulled his hand out along with a gooey greenish substance. The beast was unharmed, but angered, it became stronger, moving an inch from the brute force. It was Kiba's turn.

" Akamaru! Let's go! GATSUUGA!" The white dog on top of Kiba's back turned into a bunshin of Kiba himself. Then they both jumped into the air twisting into the air so fast the created their own separate tornadoes heading towards the beast.

The two tornadoes clashed with the beast's side, went through one side…but didn't come out the other. Before Kiba and Akamaru could come out from the whole they made, the Beast healed itself and the whole closed up leaving them both trapped inside its stomach.

" Kiba!" Shikamaru shouted as he grunted. He fell to his knees in pain, still holding the Jutsu, " Chouji! Go now!"

" Got it! Asshou No Jutsu! Chouji jumped up in the air holding up a fist high up full of blue chakra. He rushed down through the air throwing his fist down to destroy the still Beast's back bone.

Shikamaru screamed in pain as he fell to the ground unconscious and in pain. The Jutsu was released and the beast jumped up and swallowed Chouji whole, to join Kiba and Akamaru.

The beast came back to the ground, waited a second, and turned to the person who had stopped him in the first place, Shikamaru.

Kaibutsu (the beast) took step by step, paw by paw forwards, slowly…slowly. Kakashi jumped in the way with his hands spread out far, " Don't touch him! I'm the one u want! I Dented your skull remember?"

Kaibutsu looked at him, growled, and attacked. However, a second before swallowing Kakashi, the beast whirled around him and was straight over Shikamaru.

" Noooooooo!" Kakashi screamed in fury. But it was once again too late, The beast had swallowed Shikamaru to join his friends.

" Chouji! Be alert, he's going after you next!" Kakashi shouted to his last opponent.

" How do you know?" Chouji asked curiously.

" He's going after everybody except me, saving me until last." Kakashi said running after Kaibutsu who was now running towards Chouji.

" Houshou No Jutsu!" Chouji shouted as he drove the end of his right palm straight into the Beast's nose sending it flying backwards through the air a few meters.

" CHIDORI!" Kakashi shouted as he drove his jutsu into the belly of the beast. Shikamaru jumped out landing on the ground with debris all over his clothes.

" GATSUUGA!" Kiba shouted as he blasted out through the other end of Kaibutsu, leaving two wholes in its back.

The beast landed on the ground, stomach straight up, paws in the air. Then came Chouji, with the same technique he had tried earlier, however more chakra in his arm this time.

" Asshou No Jutsu!" Chouji drove his arm into Kaibutsu's chest, going straight through the deteriorating skin and bone.

" It's over," Chouji stated, " I've gone through the heart as well."

The shinobi all sighed in relief and were just about to leave to help the others, but apparently it wasn't over…

---

Lee mustered all the energy he had left to his last kick to Bushi's head. It was still no good, every attack they tried on him, was ALWAYS blocked, no matter what they did.

Lee fell to the ground exhausted from the fight. Bushi walked up to him and stepped on his chest, applying more pressure each second. Lee screamed in pain as he grasped Bushi's foot, trying to push it away.

Neji was already out, out cold, just like Shino. There was nobody left to help.

Lee finally managed to slip out of the way, and Bushi's foot crashed down on the floor, leaving his foot print engraved on the concrete.

Lee smiled as he backed away a few feet. He crouched down, and detached his weights on his ankles.

" I may not have much energy left, but I'm going to use everything I have to beat you, even if it costs me my life, I must successfully carry out the mission, as I am supposed to do. I stand here, about to try my very best, for my village, for the village of Konoha! My mission is to follow and capture Naruto! AND THAT IS EXACTLY WHAT I'M GOING TO DO! FIRST GATE!"

Lee's chakra amount expanded by a great amount once he opened the first gate. " SECOND GATE! THIRD GATE! GET READY HERE I COME!"

Lee jumped up in the air, and disappeared, appearing straight above Bushi, attempting to kick him in the head. Once again blocked. That wasn't the end. Lee disappeared once more, and once again reappearing attempting to land a kick to Bushi's head.

It went on like that for five minutes, each second, Lee trying harder and going faster. Until when he though all hope was lost, he put all his strength and might as well as speed into his punch, that he shattered Bushi's sword. His fist followed through and clashed with Bushi's face. The force alone threw Bushi in the air hitting a gravestone and then landing on the ground. He got up, without a sword and faced Rock Lee again.

" You have no weapon, it's all over for you now." Lee said with a smile.

There was a reply from the great samurai, the first time Lee had heard him talk, " You are wrong, it is not over." His voice sounded old, ancient, powerful, and deadly all at the same time. At that moment, Bushi took off all his armor and threw it on the ground. He was now wearing very old and dirty clothes, ones that Lee had never seen before.

Bushi disappeared just as Lee had done, and reappeared right behind him, kicking Lee this time, right in the stomach. Lee vomited from the overwhelming blow.

" Weights," Lee said wiping his mouth and smiling. " That's what your armor was, I'm surprised u never had to take it off before. You are a very strong and worthy opponent indeed. All this time, even with the tons of weights you had on, you still managed to match my speed without weights. However, I must end it now. I can't allow this to continue… FOUTH GATE, OPEN! FIFTH GATE OPEN NOW!"

Both of them disappeared into the air, reappearing attacking and blocking each other's attacks. The fight went nowhere, the only difference was, that the sun had finally risen, and Lee was only getting more tired. Sometimes he managed to land a punch or kick to Bushi's body, but it did no use, how could it? Bushi was already dead.

There was no way Lee could win this battle, not alone. He needed dire help, he needed rest. At this point, he wasn't sure if he would live to see the next sunset, or sunrise. If he stopped now, he would die, if he somehow managed to defeat his opponent, there was a fifty percent chance that he would still die. His body was already practically dead, it was his will, the strong will that he had, that kept him going, breathing, fighting…

---

" Kakashi-san, watch out!" Kiba shouted as the Kaibutsu appeared over the silver haired man, ready to swallow him. The wounds and wholes in the beast had now healed completely, looking even better than when they had first saw it.

Kakashi managed to dash out of the way, but not untouched. His left bicep was ripped open by one of Kaibutsu's teeth. The bleeding was everywhere, Kakashi took his Konoha headband and tightly tied it over His arm, to stop the bleeding.

" Kakashi-san, how can we kill something, that's already dead?" Kiba asked to Kakashi looking for an answer.

" I don't know Kiba, that's not something I can tell you, but I can tell you, that our mission is clear, follow and stop Naruto. We must do it. However, not at the expense of our lives. We'll find someway. It must have some kind of weakness."

" That's exactly it Kakashi-sensei, it doesn't." Shikamaru said. " The Jutsu was designed to not only kill the opponent. But it can be used for stalling as well. Naruto will hold it up as long as he can, but until he stops it, there is no defeating of this monster. He's using this as a chance to escape farther, he's probably already to far. There isn't much we can do."

" well what are our options?" Kakashi asked, looking for opinions.

" I say we run away, try to catch up with Naruto. After all, if you say we can't beat this thing, then what's the point of fighting it?" Kiba proposed.

Shikamaru shook his head, " That won't work, if we don't attack it, it'll attack us, it will follow us, and kill us. All we can do then is defend. This is a lose/lose situation for us, I've only thought of one way we can still carry out the mission. However, it's going to take a miracle. Somebody needs to call for back up, get the Hokage over here if possible. She'll handle things, also chances are, that the other team, is already dead. I'm not saying I don't' have faith in my teammates, no it's not that. What I'm saying is, if Bushi created this beast, then obviously Bushi is going to be much stronger, so why did you pick this team to fight the beast Kakashi? That is one big mistake we've made. But don't worry about it, somebody's still fighting, if not, then Bushi would already be here by now. So we must place our hope in them also. But based on all the things that I've though of, I say, we need to call for help."

" I'll go, seeing as how Akamaru and I are probably the fastest, I'll go. I'll hurry back!" Kiba said running off through the forest along with his dog, Akamaru.

Kaibutsu immediately rushed off to follow Kiba, but Chouji, Shikamaru, and Kakashi interfered and managed to stop it in its tracks. They cornered the beast, each person ready to use their best Jutsu's on it if it made a single move.

But the beast didn't move, it froze in its tracks. It began to expand.

" It's going to explode! Move out of the way!" Kakashi shouted as all three shinobi rushed as far away from Kaibutsu and into the forest as possible.

---

Lee was about to fall down, and rest for eternity, when Bushi suddenly stopped, and exploded without warning.

BOOM ---

The battle against the undead was finally over. Kakashi, Shikamaru, and Chouji were all unharmed. They continued through the forest until they finally came to the place where Lee, Neji, and Shino were fighting. They found all three of them, however, Lee was cold, and his pulse was gone.

" Lee…" Chouji said in a soft and melancholy voice.

" We were too late. Lee used all he had in him to get passed Bushi, Chouji, please go and deliver his dead body to Konoha." Kakashi said in a whisper.

" Yes sir.."

" Shikamaru, we must wake Neji and Shino, then we must continue…despite the losses we've had today." Kakashi said.

That is exactly what they did. Shino and Neji awoke and the four shinobi went on with the mission and followed Naruto's path through the forest with Pakkun leading them, while Chouji brought back Lee's limp body to Konoha.

---

**MEANWHILE…**

Naruto ended up in the sand village, finally releasing his Jutsu. He looked for an old friend of his, literally old. She was a great shinobi, who had cared for Naruto before. Chiyobaa-sama.

She came rushing out of her house and hugged Naruto who was in pain. " Let me rest old woman, please, I am exhausted, and Konoha is after me."

" Have no worry Naruto, all will be well, you are safe within these walls. Nothing will harm you here. Not even the village of Konoha."

" No, there is still one, here already, in this village. I can feel his presence. He thought he was sneaky, but I led him away from his teammates, he shouldn't be a problem. He is listening now, as I speak. Find him, and please bring him to me Chiyobaa."

" Yes of course, I will." And with that, she disappeared, and reappeared with Sasuke struggling to break away. " Is this him?"

" Yeah."

" What do you want me to do with him?"

" Let us talk. After all the chase is over, his comrades are dead, and he wants information. I'll let him have it."

---

Little did Naruto know, that more trouble was coming, more that ever imagined…

A/N: Hey guyz, ima put in some awesome stuff for the next chapter. Might take a WHILE for me to update it though. Happy thanksgiving!


	6. Sasuke's Farewell

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Chapter Six: Sasuke's Farewell

There was much silence between the four Shinobi and the small Pug as the dashed rapidly through the large forest, skipping from branch to branch, tree to tree. Time seemed to last forever, as well as their journey. The silence felt deadly, for a very heavy burden was on their shoulders. There was no room for mistakes from the beginning, but they had already made too many. The mission was almost a complete failure, but they still had their orders, and they intended to carry them out.

Lee's death was on everybody's mind, but nobody had the guts to bring it up. All they could do was continue and pursue Pakkun, for he knew where he was going.

It was Pakkun who finally spoke, saying, " It appears our mission just got a lot harder, he's headed into the Sand village, and there is another familiar scent. One that I recognize. Were there any others on the mission?"

"….Sasuke…….." Kakashi said silently.

" Yes, he's there as well."

" It doesn't look good at all, but there is still a chance to complete this mission, we now have new orders, capture Naruto, AND rescue Uchiha Sasuke. We must clear our heads in order to finish this accordingly. We must put out heads together to come up with a plan. Any ideas?" Kakashi asked.

---

" Dead? Dead?" Tsunade asked Chouji in the presence of Kiba and Akamaru. She stood standing up with her hands on her hips as Shizune held Lee's dead body.

" Yes Hokage-sama, we were divided into teams fighting Bushi and his pet beast. Lee was among the ones that fought Bushi, there was also Shino, Neji, and Sasuke. The beast exploded and that's how it was defeated. I'm assuming that Bushi exploded as well. I think Lee did his best and played all his cards in this fight. But when Bushi exploded, I think that was the end of him….We found Shino and Neji unconscious, but Sasuke was nowhere near the battle sight. The four that remain continued to carry out the mission. We need more teammates Hokage-sama! We cannot do this mission alone! We alone have tried our best! And we alone have held up the best we could. But he's too strong. We can't do this alone anymore…" Chouji said as he fell to his knees in tears.

" Hokage-sama! Let me help! I will gladly give my life to capture Naruto and bring back Sasuke! They are just Gennin, and one Jounin, how can they take on and Akatsuki member by themselves?" Shizune shouted.

There was silence in the room until Tsunade finally spoke. " No Shizune, we will all go. This mission was too dangerous from the start, and now it's my fault that Lee is dead. We will have a proper burial…But now, we will go. Shizune-san, get the ANBU over here, as well as Hiashi-sama. Tell him this is an urgent mission, and Neji's life is in danger. As for Lee, wait until Gai has arrived from his mission. When he does, hand his pupil to him, and then follow us as fast as u can."

" But Hokage-sama, doesn't….Neji-san despise Hiashi-sama?" Shizune asked.

" That fact may linger, but the other fact that we need all the help we can get is more important. This may lead us all to death, or we may be successful. One thing is for certain, it will not be an easy mission."

" Hokage-sama! Allow us to follow along too! We will do our best!" Kiba and Chouji shouted as they bowed out of respect.

" I suppose it wouldn't be too bad if you two tagged along. We leave as soon as Shizune gets the ANBU and Hiashi over here!"

" HAI!" they all said. Shizune left at once as the Hokage and two Gennin waited.

---

" Ok. Now it's just us two, you and me. You can ask the questions, and I'll answer what I can. However they can only be questions about your brother. Not about me, or the Akatsuki, which you should know that I am in by now." Naruto said as he sat and drank a glass of water.

" Very well. First of all, how did my brother get into the Akatsuki, and why?" Sasuke asked calmly.

" Ha! He doesn't even tell me that, and I'm the closest to him."

" Ok. How long have you known him?"

" I said no questions about me remember? But I guess I could answer this one. I've known him for all my life. Trained with him a lot."

" Does he ever talk about me?"

" Rarely, Let's just say he has high hopes of you. He expects great things of you. He knows you'll grow up to be the best there is. As for me, I just don't see how that's going to happen. No offense, but you're really weak."

" My ultimate goal is to seek revenge on him. But I must get stronger in order for that to happen. I know he is strong, but has he gotten stronger since before?"

" Of course, he's among the strongest in our clan. I am about half as good as him. He's really strong. I've been training day in day out my whole life, and I still can't catch up to him.

" I thought I was strong, but apparently, I had no idea…"

" You see, the thing is, you've got to be devoted."

" I am devoted!"

" I can see that. But the question is, how devoted are you? How far would you go to acquire the strength needed to destroy your brother? There's always a price needed to pay, and the question is, will you pay it?"

" I told you, defeating him is my ultimate goal, of course I will pay it."

" You say that now, but you can't even begin to imagine what's out there. The extinction of your clan, the killing of your family, yeah, that is only a taste of what people can do. Trust me. Try being tortured by the strongest illusions around for years! Every second in the illusion seems like a day, every hour seems like a year. You haven't seen nothing yet."

" I understand, what can I do to become stronger?"

" Well, let me tell you this, friends hold you back. You don't want them. You can't rely on your team to make you stronger. Look at me, I don't have any friends, and I'm the strongest 13-year old there is!"

" But if I still leave my village, how will I get stronger on my own?"

" Now that's a rare chance that you will even improve. The quickest way out, to become stronger, is to train under someone, find somebody very strong, and train with them constantly. That way your strength will increase at a rapid pace. But to find somebody like that, is very hard."

Sasuke was silent for a moment, then did something he never thought he would do. " would you train me?"

" Don't make me sick! First of all, I don't have that kind of patience. It'd be like starting all over from scratch. I'm still not strong enough, if I train somebody who's weaker than me, how can I get stronger? Also, you forget, I am in the Akatsuki! Use your head! That could never work!"

" Then what am I to do?"

" There is one, one who I know would accept you. But losses must be made."

" Like what?" Sasuke asked.

" It will take pain, lots of it too. So much pain involved. Time, and training. You must leave your village and train with him until he's done with you."

" And what happens after that?"

" …..Well…..um…I don't know."

" Who is this person that you speak of?"

" His name- Orochimaru. Ever heard of him?"

Sasuke shook his head thinking.

" He has a pupil now, but I can help you out. As I told you, losses must be made….on both sides. Give me two hours of rest, and he'll have already sent some people."

" How do you know?"

" Trust me, I know him. I've also trained with him. And he's tough. For now, stay put until I come back. If not, then leave this village, and don't come back. You're not really wanted here, and you should be grateful that I'm helping you out. I don't even know why…"

---

" Jiroubou, when we see him, immediately activate Curse seal level two. That goes for everybody including me too. We aren't dealing with a regular Jounin. We are dealing with an Akatsuki member here. Our orders are to capture Naruto-kun and bring him to Orochimaru. We must carry out the mission, even if it costs us our lives."

" Kimimaro-san, don't you think it would be wise to activate curse seal level two now, so that way, before we see him, we will already be prepared?" Jiroubou asked his superior.

" It would seem that way huh? But the answer is no, the reason is because we must conserve the most amount of energy as well as Chakra as we can. We can't afford to lose any, we will sense his presence once we get close enough. That way, we can do our best as soon as we see him. We must put forth all our effort into this mission. I don't know what Orochimaru wants with him, but we can't let Naruto escape!" Kimimaro said demandingly.

" Hai!" Shouted the four other shinobi who were there.

" We are the sound five, and we cannot lose…" Kimimaro said glazing into the sky.

---

Sasuke paced back and forth thinking and pondering. What was he to do? Would he leave his village and all his friends to gain power? He didn't even know this Orochimaru person, and how could he trust Naruto anyway? He could go back to the village, and get stronger that way…No. He would never reach his full potential. He needed power, and he needed it fast. If Naruto was lying, he would find some other way on his own to gain power. But if Naruto wasn't lying, if this Orochimaru person really was that strong, he would be in debt to Naruto, although he would never admit it…

Sasuke couldn't stay put, he kept pacing around his chair thinking and thinking. Time passed by so quickly, that before he knew it, the sun was already starting to set. Naruto finally appeared on a rooftop.

" Nervous?"

Sasuke said nothing, only gave him a glare.

" Don't be, it'll be alright. Let's go." Naruto said as he stood up and jumped down from the roof and walked to the Sand village gates with Sasuke right behind him. " Oh one more thing, there will be a few battles, I'll take care of them. I'm practically fully rested. Let's go now."

" One thing, where are we headed?" Sasuke asked.

" The sound village."

The gates opened, and Just before Naruto and Sasuke embarked on their journey to the sound village, Chiyobaa came out and shouted, " Naruto! Naruto! Wait, take this, for the journey."

Chiyobaa held out a soft beige bag that was tied up. Naruto's eyes widened, " Chiyobaa-sama this is-!"

" Not here Naruto, not in front of the Kid." Chiyobaa said looking straight at Sasuke.

" Alright alright." Naruto said as he quickly put the beige bag into his Akatsuki cloak.

The two shinobi left the sand village towards the sound village where Orochimaru lay. Waiting.

They didn't have to travel very far before they reached the sound five, consisting of Kimimaro, Sakon, Tayuya, Kidoumaru, and Jiroubou.

Kimimaro was obviously the leader of the five. He had silver hair that reached down to the end of his neck, he wore a light purplish robe, and had two red dots on his forehead. His eyes looked dull, as if he were being hypnotized by something.

Sakon looked very strange, he wore the same thing the other four were wearing, a brown shirt and black pants. His hair was a bit darker than Kimimaro's, and he had what looked like another body on his back.

Tayuya was a red haired girl with a black helmet on the top of her head. There was nothing really special about her appearance. She just held a silver flute in her hands.

Kidoumaru was tanned, and had one physical feature that stuck out like a sore thumb, he had six arms, three arms on each side.

Jiroubou had orange hair and was bald on some spots. He was big and fat, like an older Chouji.

The Sound five all stood surrounding Naruto and Sasuke looking like demons.

" Curse seal level two already?" Naruto asked.

Sasuke was amazed at this sight, why would Naruto tell him to stay back if it would be five on one? Each of the Sound five looked extremely strong, not to mention evil.

" Can I attain this power?" Sasuke asked out loud for anybody to answer.

" Yeah, that's basically what you are going to do." Naruto said.

" We have orders from Orochimaru to bring you in Naruto-kun. After we are done with you, we will dispose of the small brat here." Said Kidoumaru.

Sasuke flared at this comment, he whipped out a Kunai and rushed straight at the six-armed demon screaming his head off in fury.

Before Sasuke's Kunai could connect with his opponent, he was stopped, brought down, and pinned to the ground none other than Naruto himself.

" Don't be a fool! You can't take these people on by yourself, what did I tell you? Leave the fighting to me!" Naruto shouted as he let Sasuke go.

" Now!" Kimimaro shouted. The sound five closed in at rapid paces.

" SHUGO AMETSUCHI!" Naruto shouted as he spun once in a circle and a sphere quickly appeared around him and Sasuke.

From the inside, the sphere was like a huge window. From the Outside, it was a completely black ball with Chakra surrounding it. Sasuke watched from the inside as all five shinobi each clashed with the surface of the sphere and were sent flying way back into the forest.

" You'll be safe inside here. Don't come out of this sphere, if you do, you will surely get hurt. I'm not responsible for you, don't make the mistake of thinking that I care what happens to you. I'm just doing a favor, if you can't follow what I say, that's not my problem. But I'm highly advising for you to stay in here." Naruto said as he simply passed through the ball and came to the outside.

Kimimaro, Jiroubou, and Sakon appeared. But the other two were nowhere to be seen.

Sakon jumped up into the air and shouted, " Ukon! WAKE UP!" The body on Sakon's back came out and the both landed. Ukon looked exactly like Sakon, like a pure devil.

Naruto was distracted by this, Jiroubou saw that as a chance to use his Jutsu. " Doroudomo Doten Kekkai No Jutsu!" He shouted as he jumped up a foot in the air and came back down slamming his fist into the ground. Immediately, a barrier surrounded Naruto and The sphere that held Sasuke.

It went completely dark. They could hear Jiroubou's voice outside telling Naruto, " Do you like my Jutsu Naruto? It's made of the hardest earth around. I have you completely trapped!"

Naruto laughed. " Ha! You think that you can drain my chakra? You wouldn't be able to hold it all! Don't think I don't know. I do. This is an earth barrier that is used to drain Chakra. You plan to release it when I'm weak and then you all will take me on. But there is one thing you forget Jiroubou, I can be stronger than you. Chikara No Jutsu!"

Suddenly a large aura of blue Chakra surrounded Naruto's entire body. He took a step forward and punched the steel-hard wall. It broke open so easily, it was as if dominoes were knocked over. The whole barrier collapsed and left Naruto with a large aura of chakra, and the great black sphere.

Jiroubou charged at Naruto, it was a very big mistake however, because Naruto jumped up into the air, and gave a side kick to his head bashing it in. That was the end of Jiroubou's life.

_WHOOSH_! Naruto whirled around and caught a large arrow that would have hit his heart had he not grabbed it. It came so fast that Sasuke wasn't even able to follow it with his eyes. Naruto had it in his hand and threw it back with twice the speed heading straight towards the person who shot it in the first place.

Apparently, the Jutsu made Naruto's voice much deeper when he spoke, he sounded like a demon coming straight from the depths of hell. " How do you like your arrow now Kidoumaru?"

Sasuke heard a flute playing off in the distance, what he saw was three large giants coming in from opposite sides, each surrounding Naruto one again.

Kimimaro rushed towards Naruto with what looked like a sword made out of bone. It was an extremely bright white. He jumped up in the air and attempted to slash at Naruto's head. Naruto jumped back, dodging a swing from one of the three giants. Kimimaro reached the ground and followed him still rushing at him.

The small chase went on for about two minutes, until Kimimaro finally landed a fatal blow on Naruto. He drove his boned sword into Naruto's stomach, then jumping back.

Naruto moaned and quickly pulled the bone out of his body. Blood constantly leaked from his stained clothes to the dirt floor.

Kimimaro lifted up his left shoulder as his skin opened up. It was then when he pulled another sword out of the place that was supposed to be his arm. However, His arm looked completely normal.

Naruto was angered. But his anger solved nothing, he was losing a lot of blood and fast too. The blue aura slowly faded away and left Naruto on his knees. Kimimaro walked up to him and looked down.

" You have caused us much pain, it's time we cause you even more." He lifted up his sword, and drove it into Naruto's heart.

_Poof_! The Naruto disappeared. The real Naruto appeared flying straight at Kimimaro with his blue aura of Chakra still intact. Naruto threw his fist about to end his life, until Sakon jumped into the way. Instead, Naruto punched a hole through Sakon's chest leaving him dead on the floor.

" SAKON!" Ukon shouted as he looked at his dead brother. He rushed at Naruto seeking revenge.

" Ninpou; Kumoshi Bari!" Kidoumaru suddenly appeared and shouted as he shot a web like texture from his mouth. It covered Naruto's body and stuck to him making Naruto unable to move.

Ukon came running and hit Naruto's legs, sending him up in the air flipping many times.

A giant caught the flying Naruto and put him to his mouth. He swallowed him without chewing.

Tayuya appeared and Ukon, Kimimaro, and Kidoumaru regrouped together.

Kimimaro spoke praising Tayuya. " Great job Tayuya, good job everyone. It is unfortunate that Jiroubou and Sakon have fallen, but we must be grateful that we are still alive. But we've completed our mission, it is finished."

" It isn't finished! I'm still here, and I will destroy you!" Sasuke shouted as he stepped out of the black sphere.

" Your right, Let's take him as well to Orochimaru-sama, see what he will want to do with him." Kimimaro said as they all closed in on Sasuke and grabbed him.

BOOM! Naruto burst out of one of the Giant's stomachs and shouted, " You will not touch him! I'll personally bring him, after I dispose of you four!"

---

Kakashi, Neji, Shino, and Shikamaru finally had arrived to the sand village.

" Damn!" Kakashi shouted. " We're too late, he used that Jutsu on purpose to give himself time. Not only were we fooled, but because of his Jutsu, Lee is now gone! He came to the Sand village to rest, Pakkun, where has he gone now?"

Pakkun shook his head. " He must've showered, changed his clothes, and burned his old ones because I can't find his scent at all. It's totally gone. I have no idea where he is now."

" Well what are we to do? Any ideas anyone?" Shikamaru asked looking around.

" I have one!" A loud voice called from above. The four shinobi and dog looked up at the figure who had shouted.

" I say we follow the Hokage, and see where she leads us!" Kiba shouted from the top of the Sand village gates. He jumped down as Tsunade, Shizune, Hiashi, and ten ANBU members appeared from behind the trees.

Kakashi, Shino, and Shikamaru, as well as Pakkun relaxed. But Neji became tense staring intently at Hiashi. When Hiashi noticed this, he walked up to Neji, and kneeled. There he told the truth, about the real history of the Hyugga branches, and begged for forgiveness.

Neji was speechless, but instead of forgiving Hiashi, he walked away. Hiashi stood up and sighed.

" We must pursue Naruto now, I have a bad feeling about this…" The Hokage stated.

" How?" Kakashi asked, " Pakkun's lost Naruto's scent."

" Doubt not Kakashi, we will all search for him. Apperantly, we still have a long way to go, Naruto stalled for a long time from what Chouji and Kiba told me. Hiashi's Byakugan can't see anybody either. So, we will have to search." Tsunade said.

" Why don't we ask some people here in the sand?" Kiba asked.

" We're not even supposed to be here you dope, they are our current enemies remember?" Shikamaru asked.

" Oh...yeah…" Kiba responded falling silent.

" Bring your dog over here Kakashi. We have Naruto's old cloak, maybe he could sniff that."

Pakkun walked towards Shizune and sniffed the torn and bloody Akatsuki cloak that she held in her hands.

Pakkun sniffed it for a few seconds, looked up, and dashed through the forest shouting, " This way!"

---

" Watch it!" Kimimaro shouted as they all split up and dashed back.

" I told you not to get out of the sphere didn't I?" Naruto screamed at Sasuke.

" I was only finishing the job that you couldn't do!" Sasuke shouted back.

Naruto grabbed Sasuke by the neck, and picked him up. " Don't ever disrespect me like that again!"

He three Sasuke against the trunk of a tree, Sasuke fell down harshly. He picked himself up, but Ukon suddenly appeared behind the Uchiha member and held a Kunai to Sasuke's neck.

Release your chakra Jutsu or I'll kill the kid.

Naruto laughed as he put his hands on his hips, still containing the Jutsu, " Ha! That matters not to me, I told him I didn't care, but he didn't listen. But I'm still going to kill you all for making me go through all this trouble. Then maybe Orochimaru will have the guts to come out here himself! What a coward!"

Tayuya rushed at Naruto shouting, " Don't talk about Orochimaru-sama that way!"

" NO DON'T! TAYUYA!" Kidoumaru shouted, but it was too late for her too, Naruto simply whipped out a Kunai and stabbed her over and over and over again.

Tayuya fell to the ground to join the other two that were dead. Her blood stained the grass and Naruto stepped toward Ukon, who was still holding Sasuke hostage.

" If you don't care about his life, then I will dispose of it then!" Ukon shouted just about to slide the sharp edge of the knife across Sasuke's throat.

Sasuke wasn't that week though, Ukon was only concentrated on Naruto, he never thought that Sasuke could possibly hurt him. Sasuke simply pulled out another Kunai, and drove it into Ukon's stomach. He groaned and backed off, falling against a tree trunk.

Naruto lifted up his arm parallel to the ground. He opened his palm and pointed his arm towards the huge sphere of black chakra he had made. He picked it up from the ground and made it fly at Ukon, who was already down. He screamed before he was crushed by the Barrier.

The sphere disappeared leaving Ukon's crushed body at the trunk of the tree.

" Only two of you left, how is it going to be?" Naruto asked turning to the last two of the sound five.

Kidoumaru jumped back into the forest. Kimimaro stayed to fight, " I'm like you, I care not for my teammates either, ha, it was only a matter of time before I killed them myself. See they are weak, unlike you and I, we are alike, superior in every way to everybody else. You know Orochimaru's power, he can give it all to you, make you even stronger than you already are. But you've lost that chance already. It's over for you, I shall eliminate you now, even if it costs you my life!"

" You can try, but you will fail." Naruto said preparing for whatever Kimimaro was going to do.

Kimimaro jumped into the ground, a few seconds later, Naruto figured out what Kimimaro was going to do. " Daishinsai No Jutsu!" Naruto put his hands up into the air, and looked up at the sky.

" Watch Sasuke, this is one of my strongest Jutsu's." Then Naruto's eyes turned completely white, looking like what seemed to be the back of his eyeball."

Sasuke waited, he couldn't see anything happening. But then he felt it. But it was so tiny, if he hadn't been standing still, and if there hadn't been complete silence, he wouldn't have even sensed it was happening. He felt a very, very slight shift in the earth he was standing on.

What broke the silence, was thousands of bones coming from out of the ground, but the thing was, once they reached a centimeter above the ground, they were shattered into dust. Apparently, whatever Kimimaro was trying to do, it didn't work at all…

Naruto then put his hands down, and his eyes became normal once again. Then he explained, " I created an earth quake that did two things, it created an invisible barrier around the atmosphere, and it destroyed every living thing underground, and you barely even felt it. That Jutsu takes up so much Chakra, I feel week now. The Kazekage created that Jutsu after Fifty-six years of trial and error. It took me two months. It was very hard to do, and it was one of the most recent Jutsu that I learned. Anyway, we still have one more to take care of. And he's aiming straight for you."

Sasuke seemed very surprised at this remark. He became as alert as a cat, looking everywhere.

Naruto smiled then laughed, " Don't worry, He-"

Naruto was cut off as a very large arrow flew threw his right shoulder. Naruto fell to the ground, with his eyes closed, bleeding from his wound.

Kidoumaru appeared, but this time, looking normal. He was weak, and very tired. Sasuke could tell, Kidoumaru was leaning against a tree trunk and panting, gasping for air.

" Ha, ha…..That prick, he managed to move to the left, so I would not hit a very vital spot, but he was too slow, I still pierced his lungs. Now I'm going to take him to Orochimaru-sama, just like I'm supposed to."

" You will have to get passed me first!" Sasuke said, pulling out a Kunai and stepping in the way of Kidoumaru and Naruto.

" Stupid kid, do you know who you're dealing with? I am Kidoumaru! One of the strongest of the sound five! I will kill you easily, are you sure you still want to stay in my way? I'm willing to spare you if you let me take him. You should consider it an honor."

" You just try and take him!" Sasuke shouted, getting more and more angry. He dashed towards Kidoumaru, he knew he had a very little chance of success, but he couldn't let all Naruto's effort go to waste.

" Stupid kid!" Kidoumaru shouted as he just stepped forward and gave a strong punch to Sasuke's gut.

Sasuke was stopped in his track, looking straight at his opponent with his jaw dropped. He coughed once and blood spurted out on Kidoumaru's face. They stood at that position, as if they were frozen or connected. Sasuke managed two words before he fell, " It's over."

Kidoumaru suddenly felt his leg very wet. He looked down, and realized that Sasuke had driven his Kunai into his stomach. Too much blood had already left him, and had already managed to cover his whole leg. Kidoumaru felt cold, then weak, he closed his eyes as he fell back to the ground.

Sasuke fell but stayed awake, He looked back at Naruto's body. But it was gone.

Sasuke stood up and looked around, Kakashi, Neji, Kiba, Chouji, Shikamaru, Pakkun, and Shino were all staring at him. Then the rest of the group came out as well as Tsunade.

" Uchiha Sasuke! What has happened here?" Tsunade demanded.

" He left….to avoid this…." Sasuke whispered to himself so that nobody could hear. He reached into his pocket, and pulled out an exploding tag. He threw it at everybody as it exploded. Smoke was everywhere, and that was when he escaped. He headed straight for where The sound five had came, to Orochimaru…

A/N thanx guyz, I still have great ideas in my head. Sasuke won't show up for at least two chapters. There will also be three characters that I made up in the next chapter or chapter after that. Plz tell me how I did, and what should happen, or what would be cool. But the next chapter will be a pretty long time, cuz i got semester exams and such, so plz bare w/ me and be patient.


	7. The Sannin's apprentice

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Chapter Seven: The Sennin's Apprentice

Tsunade lifted her head from her desk. " What am I to do Shizune?"

" Don't be too hard on yourself Tsunade-sama. It's not your fault." Shizune replied, making an effort to comfort her superior.

" Not my fault? Not my fault? It was all my fault! Because of me, Rock Lee is dead! We weren't in time to capture Naruto OR save Sasuke! We would have caught him if it hadn't been for that lake. That was where Pakkun lost his scent…"

"Look on the bright side- Your teammate is coming back to Konoha for a couple of weeks. How long has it been?"

" Ah yes, Jiraiya. It's been a long time, I wonder how he's been doing. When is he coming again?"

Shizune took out a calendar, " Let's see, um….He will arrive in two days."

" When does the Funeral end?" Tsunade asked leaning back in her chair sighing.

" It has already ended. I believe they are burying Lee as we speak."

" What am I to do? I'm at a terrible position right now…"

" Just wait until Jiraiya-sama comes. Maybe he will help."

" Maybe you're right, maybe he will know what to do. I just wonder what Sandaime would do in my position."

---

Neji stayed in his fighting position, careful not to let his guard down. He knew that Ten-ten would strike any second now. But she wasn't in range of his vision with his Byakugan. Neji didn't expect to see Hiashi coming towards him.

Hiashi came, signaling peace. " All I want to do is talk."

Neji tried to blow him off saying, " I'm training right now, leave me alone."

" Neji, please understand, it was my brother's choice to do what he did. I'm very sorry, you and me, we have potential, I've already exceeded mine. But you still have much to go, come, let me train you, under my training, you will become the best Hyugga around. I'm a legend, I'm betting you can surpass me in a few years. Just please, let this dispute between us end, come to a complete stop."

Neji thought for a moment, then said softly, " I'll need some time…"

Hiashi smiled and said, " Then time you shall have." He walked off through the forest happily, and forgiven.

Ten-ten jumped down from a near branch.

" Why did you let him come?" Neji asked.

" I thought you needed to talk. And apparently I was right." Ten-ten answered.

" You were listening?"

" A little…"

" Let's go Ten-ten, I think I will retire for the rest of the day, I have many things to think about." Neji suggested.

" I was just about to say that. But what do you think is going to happen to our team?"

Neji shook his head. " I don't know, I suppose they will assign us a new teammate, the question is, who? I wonder if they will assign us a new Sensei as well…"

" Neji! Don't even think that!"

" Well it's true! You've seen Gai-sensei, he's devastated, completely devastated…Let's just go."

The two Gennin followed the path that Hiashi took to get out of the forest. They each then returned to their homes.

---

" The Hokage will see you now." Replied one of the Konoha guards to a tall built man. The man walked through the door to meet Tsunade to tell her about his problem.

The tall man was tanned, with gray hair and a white goatee. His eyes were the color of blue and he wore casual clothes.

" I'm glad you could arrange your schedule in order to see me. I come from the Boar Country." The man said.

" The Boar Country? That's a little far don't you think?" Tsunade asked amazed.

" I know it would seem that way, but my village has sent me to seek help. This is an A rank mission according to your standards. I would like you to send some extremely powerful Shinobi to complete this."

" If it's an A rank mission, then why should I send my best shinobi? Some of my Chunnin could complete A rank missions." Tsunade answered.

" It looks like an A rank mission to your village, but to me, it seems even higher than S rank. You see, the Feudal lord in my village has been doing some dealings in secrecy. Every time somebody came close or did discover what he was doing, they would magically disappear. That went on for three years, nobody wanted to do anything about it, for fear of getting killed. That was until a few weeks ago. He then finally revealed his evil plan. He said he had been dealing and transporting a lot of smuggled drugs. And that he had eventually through time put it in our water supply. The effect of the drug has not been able to happen yet, because it needs to be activated by some kind of powder. That powder is really hard to find, so he sent a couple of his skilled Shinobi to find it. But when they do find it, and activate the drug which everybody has in their body by now, we will all become mind zombies to do the Feudal lord's will. The village managed to arrange three people to leave the village. So it was me, and my two other companions that volunteered. We were to travel to Konoha to seek out very strong shinobi to stop the Feudal Lord. My two other companions were slaughtered. One was buried alive, and the other one was tortured to death after he wouldn't tell them anything. They know that I'm still out here, so now I'm a target of the Feudal lord. And our only hope of survival. Please I ask of you to send your strongest shinobi to complete this mission." The old man explained sadly.

Tsunade thought for a few minutes while the whole room was silent. Then she said, " Give me two days, and you shall have your team. Within two days, you will set out back to your village, and you will also be protected throughout the whole time. Then the team will settle matters in your village so peace may be restored once again. How does that sound?"

The old man bowed in thanks and said, " Thank you Hokage-sama. I and my village are forever indebted to you. There is one thing though, the Feudal Lord now has many, many people working under him. Probably a few hundred. Please send at least more than one team just to make sure."

" I will decide what is enough and not enough, for now you just go stay in a hotel, we will gladly pay for your stay. Please enjoy yourself here the best you can, it'll be two days before you know it, and you will already be at your village at peace." Tsunade said as The tall white bearded man left the room to go stay at a hotel.

When everybody had left the room but Tsunade and Shizune, Shizune asked, " Tsunade-sama, doesn't Jiraiya-sama come in two days?"

Tsunade put her hands together and smiled deviously, " Precisely."

**TWO DAYS LATER**

---

" Open the gates! Open the gates now! One of the three Sannin has arrived!" Said a shinobi guarding Konoha's gates.

The large gates of Konoha village opened and two people stepped in. One old man, and one teenager.

The old man had long hair, he wore a red vest and a gray long sleeved shirt under. He had a somewhat head band but it was larger and it had some writing on it instead of the Village symbol. He had a red line coming down from each eye, it almost looked as if they were straight paths of tears.

The teenager had black spiky hair, he wore a black robe with red lining at the ends of it. They both wore the same sandals. But the teenager had a long scar starting from between his eyebrows, to the middle of his nose, then it continued off to the side over his cheek and finished at the end of his jaw.

Tsunade came to greet Jiraiya personally along with Shizune. Tsunade greeted Jiraiya, then looked down at the teenager that followed him. " Jiraiya, can I talk to you for a second? Alone?"

The two Sannin went to a room alone and began to talk. " I see you have brought excess luggage since we last met Jiraiya."

" Still a stubborn old hag aren't' you? He is my apprentice. He has an incredible amount of Chakra for his age, and a lot of potential. He's very competitive, and wants to fight anybody who he thinks is strong. His name, Uzumaki Ketsu." Jiraiya explained.

" Uzumaki huh? Sounds familiar somehow. How old is the boy?" Tsunade asked.

" He's fifteen, I found him when he was five, I've been training him ever since. He's extremely strong. Probably the strongest teenager around."

" I doubt it…" Tsunade said.

" What did you say?" Jiraiya asked frowning.

" I'm saying that there probably is one teenager that's even younger than him and stronger than him!"

" Oh yeah? And who might that be?" Jiraiya asked not believe Tsunade.

" Naruto! He works for the Akatsuki and he's thirteen! Ever heard of him?" Tsunade shouted angrily.

"….Ah yes…I remember now. Ketsu wants to fight him more than anything. He says he's stronger, they somehow resemble each other in a way. As for me, I don't believe any thirteen year old can defeat Ketsu, including Naruto!"

" Well, why don't we test the boy's strength?" Tsunade asked already creating a plan in her head.

" What do you mean?"

" I know you two have just arrived, but let's see if he can handle an S-rank mission."

" Of course he can but-" Jiraiya was cut off by Tsunade's overwhelming voice.

" If he can, then go. I will assign him a team, temporarily of course. Then him and his team will go with Kakashi and escort a man who is wanted. The mission is dangerous. The man will inform the team later. But now, go back to Ketsu and tell him he's going on a mission." Tsunade demanded.

" When does the mission start?" Jiraiya asked sighing.

" NOW!" Tsunade shouted.

Jiraiya came out of the building him and Tsunade were in and went to his apprentice.

" Ketsu, you have a mission to do, I know you just got back, but it's a very difficult mission, and the Hokage wants you to go on it. You will be accompanied by two other people and Kakashi who is extremely strong."

" Yes sir." Was all that Ketsu said. He waited standing straight at the gates. Waiting for his two teammates.

" So you are our new teammate huh?" Ten-ten asked walking along side Neji and Kakashi.

Ketsu nodded and the four shinobi set out by sunset along with the tall man they were protecting.

---

" Let me tell you something Tsunade, I have very high hopes for that boy." Jiraiya said as he and Tsunade watched Ketsu and his team leave the village from a window.

" Well what do you expect? That boy's a prodigy."

" He will surpass our Sannin level by far soon enough, it's only a matter of time. He's got the potential, he has the will to do it too. Only a matter of time…"

---

" I don't know why the Hokage would only send four people to protect me. I mean, three of them are kids for Pete's sake! This won't be enough to stop the Feudal Lord! Oh my, I don't know how we are going to survive, I mean he has-" The tall man running along side of the four shinobi was interrupted by Neji.

" The Hokage is good at her job, do not doubt her, if she says this will be enough, then this will be enough. It is our job to protect you and carry out the mission, we will and have put our lives on the line ready to do what is necessary in order to successfully complete this mission. Have faith in us um…we didn't really get your name."

" Chinobo Anuga. I guess you're right, I will have faith in you all. I believe you can help and save my village, I am only here to wish you good luck." Anuga said with a smile as he continued to run along side the four shinobi.

" Anuga, so tell us, when did he send the person to retrieve the activation powder?" Kakashi asked.

" Well, he sent the person out about four days ago. There is not telling when he will be back, for all we know, he could be back already, who knows what we'll find when we get back to the village. It is after all, a three day travel…" Anuga said sadly.

" Not if we hurry!" Ten-ten shouted. They all broke out into a much faster pace.

" How's your stamina?" Kakashi asked.

" Oh, actually, very good. Our village has long races from country to country, taking weeks to finish. I run them. I usually place above fifth place. Infact, I may even be able to run the whole way if I really tried. But then I would be extremely exhausted from no eating or drinking nor sleeping. But I can do it." Anuga answered.

" Good, we will stop only to eat and drink. We will sleep four hours at the most each day. Is that alright with everybody?" Kakashi asked again.

Everybody nodded and Ketsu was silent. They all continued at the pace they were going for the rest of the day.

" Kakashi!" Ten-ten said gasping for air still running ten hours later. " I must take a break!" I cannot continue for much longer!"

" Very well." Kakashi said as they all stopped. It was now completely and had been dark in the sky for many hours. " The sun will rise soon, but we can rest for about one hour. After all, it is safer to travel during the day time. Is everybody ok?"

" I'm fine, I little tired, but rest is looking pretty good right now." Anuga responded.

Neji and Ketsu were silent, however, they did not look tired at all.

" Ketsu-san, I realize you have not talked at all ever since we left Konoha which was a long time ago." Kakashi said addressing Ketsu.

Ketsu still did not say a word, he merely ignored the White-haired man, and sat down with his eyes closed.

" Ah, meditation. Great idea, but a bit cold to do that don't you think?" Anuga asked Ketsu hoping that he would get an answer. Ketsu didn't budge at all.

They all rested for about thirty minutes. When it was time to leave, everybody opened their eyes and got up. They each noticed Ketsu was missing.

" I have not seen him around anywhere!" Ten-ten said.

" We cannot risk this, but I will not leave a teammate behind." Kakashi exclaimed. " You two will escort Anuga to his village, I will catch up with you later, and Ketsu will be with me."

" There is no need." Anuga said smiling. He was looking up, straight at a tall tree, where Ketsu sat high above them.

He jumped down from the tree, and spoke. " Didn't you know to hide yourself even if you are resting?"

Nobody said nothing after that, they all simply continued the journey for a few more hours.

" A few more hours and we will be coming up on my village." Anuga shouted.

Ketsu stopped. Everybody stopped right after.

" What's wrong?" Anuga asked.

Each shinobi looked at each other.

" Ten-ten, Neji, Ketsu! Watch over Anuga, I'll be right back." Kakashi demanded.

" What's wrong?" Anuga asked again.

" We sense trouble. And Kakashi's gone to take care of it." Neji said, activating his Byakugan. He and Ten-ten surrounded Anuga looking outwards, ready to protect him at all costs. Ketsu simply walked toward the direction Kakashi was going.

" Ketsu-san! Kakashi gave us strict orders to stay and protect Anuga!" Ten-ten shouted.

Ketsu turned around, " There's no need to protect him, if the enemies are eliminated now is there?" He then continued and disappeared through the forest.

" Ketsu!" Ten-ten shouted at one last attempt for him to return.

" That boy…who knows what goes on in his head…" Anuga said shaking his head.

Neji and Ten-ten didn't have to do much, because Ketsu and Kakashi came back a few minutes later. Kakashi was shouting at Ketsu, giving him an angry lecture.

" Don't ever do that again! You could have destroyed this whole forest, any less experience, and you would've caused total chaos! And don't ever disobey my order again! I told you I would take care of it. I know the way you see it, but that's not the way this works. I don't know what Jiraiya-sama taught you, but stick to what the rules are. When I tell you to stay put, stay put! You could have put us all in jeopardy! Our mission is to protect Anuga and bring peace to his village by taking out the Feudal lord! How are we going to successfully complete that, if Anuga dies?"

Ketsu stayed silent, with his arms crossed. He looked normal, almost as if he were ignoring Kakashi. When Kakashi had cooled off, they continued on their journey, they were now in the Boar country, headed for the Numi village.

They arrived at the break of Dawn. Happy that they had successfully made it. Now they just needed to overthrow the Feudal Lord.

" What happens if you go in alone?" Kakashi asked Anuga.

" Well, I will immediately be captured and killed by the Feudal Lord's guards. They are out to get me."

" Well then, looks like you won't be going in alone." Kakashi said. At that time, Ketsu once again had disappeared, however, nobody had noticed. They all came up to the gate and expected for it to open. But it didn't move at all.

" I suppose maybe that-" Anuga was cut off by the sound of the gates finally opening. The three shinobi present each got ready to fight.

They finally were able to see the inside of the Numi village, as well as the person who opened it. Ketsu.

They entered and looked around at the fifteen guards all unconscious on the ground.

" …Good work Ketsu," Kakashi said silently.

" Alright, Anuga, we will be closely be watching you from the rooftops, so you will have to be alone at this point. Lead us directly to the Feudal Lord's house." Kakashi demanded as the four shinobi each jumped swiftly to the rooftops following Anuga as he walked along the streets of his village.

It wasn't too long before Anuga had led them to the Feudal Lord's house. After all, it was the biggest one by far in the whole village. It was also not long, before five guards came out, each of them, very large and muscular, holding Katanas wearing purple robes. They all ran at Anuga taking out their swords.

Ten-ten, Neji, Kakashi, and Ketsu jumped down to take one for each of them. But that still left another one.

Ten-ten dashed to the side and dodged an attack from the incoming sword. She then threw a Kunai straight at her opponent's hand. It connected, causing the huge man to drop his sword. She then quickly dashed at him, and repeatedly threw flying kicks to his face finally defeating him and leaving him unconscious.

Neji simply ducked and dodged the attack coming at him, and gave six kicks to the stomach and his opponent was out.

Kakashi whirled around his opponent, and chopped him in the neck knocking him out.

Ketsu managed to time his attacks and right before the sword hit his face, he pushed it outwards leaving an open attack. He then punched his enemy and that was the end. They all turned around to witness something they did not expect.

Anuga jumped up and over his opponent, giving a kick to the back of his enemy's head. When he landed, he rushed at the huge man, and slid under the swiping of the sword and gave a hard kick to his knee. The man dropped his sword and fell to the ground screaming in pain. Anuga stood up and looked back at his protectors.

" I know a little self defense." He explained.

Then everybody turned to the clapping noise that came from the Feudal Lord house's direction. There they saw a man with a very long black beard, and very elegant clothes applauding them.

" Feudal Lord!" Anuga shouted completely surprised.

" Don't be alarmed Anuga. I am here, as I always was. But I am sorry to tell you that you are too late. Just a few hours too late infact. Everybody in the village is now under my control." The Feudal Lord said smiling.

Ketsu smirked and laughed. The Feudal Lord turned around to see Ketsu behind him, " You are the worst liar I've ever met, if what you say is true, then Anuga would already be under your control." He then punched the well dressed man.

_Poof_! The Feudal Lord disappeared and reappeared on the rooftop.

" He knows Ninjutsu?" Neji asked.

" Oh yes!" Anuga shouted, " He was directly trained by one of the Tsuchikage's. He is very powerful."

The Feudal Lord removed his robes to show what he was wearing under, armor. He was ready to fight. " Guards!" He shouted.

Suddenly, at least seventy-five guards appeared each surrounding the five people. " The activation powder will arrive any minute now, we will all do our best to kill the people who stand in our way of control!" The Feudal Lord shouted. " Kill them!"

The guards all charged as The Feudal Lord himself dashed on the rooftops attempting to escape the battle scene. However, Kakashi was right behind him.

Neji and Ten-ten fought around Anuga trying their best to protect him. Occasionally, one would slip past their guard, and Anuga would take care of him.

Ketsu was taking everybody on all at once. Only using Taijutsu, taking everybody out in one blow. He continued to fight, until there were to many. He eloped to the roof top, where a woman, the only woman soldier followed.

She smiled holding her Sword tightly ready to fight. " Do you really think you'll get passed me?"

" Well, let's find out." Ketsu said as the woman charged straight at him. He only dodged her attacks, not laying a hand on her body. Every time the woman failed to land a blow, she was angered more and more. But Ketsu would not lay a finger on his opponent, only dodging her swift attacks.

Ten-ten caught sight of this, and she took a sword from one of her opponents.

" Ketsu!" She shouted as he caught the sword that was thrown at him.

He was now dodging as well as blocking her attacks. Parrying them. They jumped back at one moment.

" Now that I have this weapon, please understand, I will not hesitate to kill you, woman or not, you are still my enemy. You have seen that you are clearly no match for me, please, do not make the mistake of fighting, I do not want to end your life."

" Ha! You think you can beat me? I'll show you how to really use a sword!" She then took her sword, and kneed the handle, splitting it into two blades. One in each hand.

" Humph, neat trick, but it won't help." Ketsu stated.

" I'll decide that!" And with that, the woman charged Ketsu screaming her head off in rage.

She jumped up, and whirled around in the air, swinging her swords. As soon as Ketsu tried to block her attack, the first block immediately shattered his sword. The second strike came down very quickly. Ketsu barely managed to dodge it. He jumped back and tossed away the handle he was holding.

" Still think you can beat me?" The woman said smiling.

" Without a doubt."

The woman charged again, doing the same move, spinning in the air, swinging her swords. She looked like a tornado of blades.

But Ketsu had already seen that move, and he knew how to counter it. He jumped on his hands and did a back flip to get away from the woman. She only followed him, constantly spinning.

Ketsu sighed in sadness, " very well…" He said. " This was your choice. RASENGAN!"

A blue sphere of chakra appeared in his hand and he threw it at her. The Rasengan shattered both her swords and hit her body driving her off the roof and into the crowd.

Ketsu looked down, and everything was under control, Neji and Ten-ten did not need his help. So he dashed off, to see if Kakashi did.

---

Kakashi followed The Feudal Lord until the very last part of the village.

Kakashi and his opponent finally stopped each standing on opposite rooftops, they faced each other.

The Feudal Lord smiled, then said, " so how do you plan to win this?"

Kakashi lifted up his headband so that it was now straight, exposing his Sharingan eye to the cold air. " With this," He said.

The Feudal Lord bowed his head for a moment then smiled even more, " Oooh, Sharingan eh? Could you be….No…The legendary Copy Ninja? Hatake Kakashi?"

" That would be me."

" Ha, ha ha! Well, that might make this fight a bit more interesting then. Let's play shall we?"

The Feudal Lord jumped high up into the air lifting his hands up. The rooftop tiles came apart and came up into the air along side of him. There were hundreds of tiles all over. He then pointed at Kakashi, and every single tile flew straight at him.

Kakashi stepped back a few steps, then concentrating on dodging each one that came at him, and block them as well. He was doing extremely well, but what he didn't notice was that the flying tiles were a distraction, and now the Feudal Lord was right behind him.

It was too late when Kakashi noticed, The Feudal Lord pointed his hands down at Kakashi's feet, and shouted, " Ganseki Buutsu!"

All of a sudden, a clayish rock substance appeared on the roof and wrapped itself around Kakashi's feet, ankles, and shins, resembling firm, boots made out of rock. Kakashi was then unable to move as every single tile left hit his body.

Kakashi was left there standing. As The Feudal Lord walked around him out of his arm length's reach.

" My, my, my, I didn't think you would be so easy to defeat, I suppose I will never find a challenge." He sighed, then continued. " I stopped fighting because there was nobody worth fighting, I thought that maybe you group from Konoha would do good against me. But look at you now, ready to die within ten seconds of the battle. Kakashi, you disappoint me. I thought you would be stronger than that by now. Use your Sharingan for Pete's sake! I mean-"

" Ok. Ganseki Buutsu!" Kakashi shouted pointing at the Feudal Lord's feet. Once again, the clay substance came out of the roof and hardened around the Feudal Lord's legs. The Kakashi that had performed the Jutsu with a _Poof_! And the real one appeared at a roof top behind the Feudal Lord.

Kakashi smiled. " A ninja must look underneath the underneath. I only did what you told me to do, use my Sharingan."

The Feudal Lord laughed. " Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha! I was fooled, by the easiest trick in the book. I thought too advanced, thinking of all the moves you could do, thinking of how I would counter it and use it against you. But all you do is copy my ability, and use it against me, I can't believe I almost fell for such a trick."

" Almost?" Kakashi asked, staying alert.

" Yes, almost. I may be stuck, but that doesn't mean I still can't use Jutsu, I still have my hands don't I? Ganseki Hiryuu!"

Just then, a humongous serpent/dragon appeared from under the ground. Destroying houses and breaking The Feudal Lord free from his imprisonment. The Feudal Lord climbed aboard the Dragon's head, riding it as it flew towards Kakashi.

The dragon made of the earth could have easily swallowed Kakashi. Kakashi dashed from roof top to rooftop jumping down to the empty streets and back up to the rooftops again just to avoid the dragon that Pursued him. Unfortunately, the dragon was faster than him, so it was gaining distance very quickly.

Kakashi then jumped and landed on his left hand, in his right hand, he carried his most used technique, the Chidori. He let the Dragon catch up. When it did, he jumped from his upside down position to the tip of the dragon's nose, barely avoiding it's mouth. He drove his hand full of blue lightning through the snout and ran towards the Feudal Lord dragging his hand through the dragon's head.

Kakashi then took out his hand from its head, and swung his arm around, attempting to drive his technique into his opponent's stomach. It all happened so fast.

At the end of it all, Kakashi looked down at his legs as the headless dragon crashed down to the ground. He saw his arm inside his own chest. And then he realized that at the last second, the Feudal Lord managed to save himself and also was able to lead Kakashi to drive the attack into his own chest. But the Feudal Lord was not able to do that untouched. Some of the technique had bushed against his stomach, it created a wound semi-deep but deep enough that he could see his muscle.

Kakashi fell to the ground, bleeding from his insides. The Feudal Lord jumped back, exhausted from summoning the dragon, and from his new wound that he had just received. He jumped on the rooftop in order to escape, but apparently the battle was not over.

" Where are you going?" Said a voice different from Kakashi's.

The wounded Feudal Lord turned around slowly to see one of the children that had accompanied Kakashi on the mission.

Ketsu smiled, pumped up and ready to fight. He then looked down at his wounded leader. " Looks like I'll have to finish this quickly." He said with a sigh. He stepped forward toward his opponent.

" You honestly think you can defeat me, when your master has failed?"

" Well, considering that your wounded, and that I could have beaten you when you were still completely regenerated, I would say…yes." Ketsu said still closing in on the Feudal Lord.

" Very well, I shall make your death a quick one."

" Bomu Rasengan!" Ketsu shouted as he stuck out his arm with his hand spread out. A tiny red ball of Chakra one-fourth the size of the regular Rasengan appeared floating steadily in Ketsu's hand. He threw it at his opponent. That was the end of the battle. Once the small red ball connected with the Feudal Lord's body, a great explosion immediately occurred.

The explosion was so large that it caused about five houses to be disintegrated. Ketsu was able to get Kakashi back to Neji and Ten-ten. They had finished their part by taking care of every soldier present.

Anuga looked up at Ketsu and Kakashi, " Thank you all, very much."

" Um…is there anyway that we could possibly nurse Kakashi here? He won't make it riding all the way back to Konoha." Ketsu asked.

" Why of course! Hurry, we must not waste any time, for it is too precious, each second that is gone, means more blood that is lost. Hurry, this way!" Anuga shouted leading them to another large building. There Kakashi was rushed to a room where they were able to stitch his wounds back up and nurse him back to health.

Neji, Ten-ten, and Ketsu stayed by Kakashi's side for five days. Until he finally opened his eyes again. One day more, and the four of them were back on their feet again. They were off, back to their village, having completed their mission successfully.

Halfway on the journey home, they spotted a hot spring in the night time.

" It's best if we get back to the village as soon as possible." Kakashi said, urging for them to move on without stopping for relaxation at the hot springs.

" You guys go, I think I will stay." Ketsu said. So the three shinobi left him as they headed back to their village, and Ketsu entered the Hot water.

There was steam everywhere, so hardly anything was visible, just the stars above him. But he did notice that one other person was there, relaxing in the water as well.

" Nice night out huh?" The person asked in a friendly tone.

" Sure is," Ketsu said smiling as he looked up at the billions of stars that crowded the beautiful night sky.

" So what brings you out here in these parts?" The person asked again.

" Just got back from a mission, I figure it's best if I relax." Ketsu replied.

" Alone?"

" Yep."

Everything was silent for a few minutes. Finally, a cold wind picked up a little bit and cleared away the steam that shrouded their vision. Finally, Ketsu was able to see who he was talking to. He was talking to another boy, probably one or two years younger than himself. The boy had blond hair, and a faint hint of whiskers on his cheeks. The blond boy also had blue eyes, just like Ketsu did.

Then it struck Ketsu, that this person, the teenager relaxing in front of him, was none other than….Naruto. Who had murdered many people and worked for the Akatsuki. Ketsu gave Naruto a cold look, one resembling hate, He got up, tying a towel covering his lower parts.

" So that's how it is…" Naruto said, doing the same.

They both stood clothed in only a white towel, standing fifty feet away from each other still in the water that was up to their knees, both in their fighting positions…facing each other in anger…

A/N: plz review guyz! Tell me how it is, I just thought of even greater ideas. Next chapter I will introduce I believe either three or four new characters. Also, the next chapter will take a lil long for it to come out. But plz review and flame if you want to. Just tell me how I'm doing and what you would like to happen in this story, I'm open for all ideas. Once again, plz review!


	8. Tennoushihai

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Chapter Eight: Tennoushihai

Jiraiya, Tsunade, as well as everybody else in the village waited eagerly inside the gates of Konoha for the arrival of the team.

Kakashi, Neji, and Ten-ten had finally arrived, weary from the journey home. They had left Ketsu behind, just like he had asked them to.

They entered their sweet home and everybody cheered. Jiraiya frowned.

He walked up to the team and asked, " Where's Ketsu?"

" He asked to stay behind on the return home. He decided to stay at a hot spring. He should be arriving about an hour from now. He can't be too far behind. He'll arrive shortly." Kakashi said walking off.

" That was an irresponsible thing to do Kakashi, and you know it." Jiraiya said not looking back.

Kakashi said nothing, and walked off.

---

There was a long pause as Ketsu and Naruto stared down each other. It was like a starring contest between them. The two of them glaring at them as if a simple look could kill.

Ketsu and Naruto were around the same height. The hot water sank up to both their knees. Ketsu stepped up so that his foot was outside of the water. Then he placed the bottom of his foot at the surface, using it as a step to lift his other foot and stand normally. Now he was not in the water, but standing on it.

Naruto stood alert as Ketsu stuck his hand out in front of him.

Ketsu opened up his hand and stared intently at the water. " Mizu….Bomu Rasengan!"

After the shouting of the Jutsu, everything was silent, everything was still. The only thing that was heard, was the small voice of the wind, whistling past the two great shinobi teenagers.

Then the explosion came. An underwater explosion right in the place of Naruto. every single drop of the Hot springs was gone and now everywhere in the atmosphere.

Ketsu jumped back having initiated the battle with his exploding technique.

" Rasengan eh?" Naruto asked from behind Ketsu. Ketsu whirled around with two blue Rasengans in each of his hands. He swung his arms and threw the blue chakra sphere directly at Naruto.

Naruto only put out both of his hands and caught each of the Rasengans crushing them with his hands. " You're going to need more than that to beat me."

" How bout this!" Ketsu shouted as a tiny red Rasengan appeared in his hand. He ran towards Naruto attempting to drive it into Naruto's head. Naruto simply moved out of the way with such speed, grabbed Ketsu's wrist, and drove the tiny red Rasengan into the ground where it exploded leaving a huge crater.

Ketsu got up because he was knocked from the blast. He looked around, Naruto was on the other side of the crater.

" You're very powerful, but you have too little experience with your jutsu's. You still need much more practice. Come." Naruto said extending his arm with his palm upwards gesturing for Ketsu to come to him.

" I'll make you regret saying that!" Ketsu shouted as he ran down the crater and up again to reach his opponent.

Ketsu jumped up and extended his leg out trying to kick Naruto. Naruto moved aside an gave three blows to Ketsu's stomach. Ketsu fell to the ground but got back up again wiping himself off.

" I'll kill you!" Ketsu shouted.

" Your trash talk does not intimidate me, anger also solves nothing." Naruto said calmly. " Look how angry you are, and how much you've accomplished, but I didn't expect you to be that good anyway."

" Shut up! I've trained my whole life, I will kill you, I'll show you my power, and make you eat your own words! Don't tell me what to do!" Ketsu ran once again to Naruto, but ten times faster this time.

He threw a punch at Naruto's face, Naruto blocked it with his right hand, and tried to punch Ketsu's stomach with his left. Ketsu spun around to his right so that he was now behind Naruto. He jumped this time landing a kick to the side of Naruto's head. Naruto was sent flying into a nearby tree.

" How does that feel?" Ketsu asked smiling but also panting.

Naruto stood up, still calm. He wiped the blood off from the side of his mouth, and said, " Impressive, but your kick is weak. Good for your age though."

This statement only angered Ketsu more. He once again dashed at his opponent with a regular Rasengan in his hand.

" Is that all you know how to do? Rasengan again? Haven't you seen that it doesn't work against me? Here, let me show you." Naruto said as he watched his opponent's anger rise and rush at him.

Naruto stuck out his hand and created a Rasengan himself. He rushed at Ketsu too, they came together, their Rasengans both colliding with one another, creating yet another explosion sending each of them flying back. They both got up at the same time.

" See?" Naruto said, putting his towel back on for it had fallen off. " You can't beat me."

" You said that I can't beat you with just Rasengans. That's not the only moves I know at all. I'm just testing your strength. I suppose I could go a step further and try a little harder." Ketsu said with a smile.

" Finally." Naruto said rolling his eyes. Ketsu jumped up into the air doing three flips, biting his thumb until blood appeared, and then doing a set of hand seals shouting, " Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" He landed on the ground punching his open palm into it.

Suddenly, the ground shook, and _POOF_! A humongous frog appeared in front of Naruto as Ketsu stood on its head. The frog was at least 125 meters tall and wore a blue robe with whites at the tips. The huge frog also carried a sword at its side.

" AH? KETSU? WHY DO YOU SUMMON ME?" The frog asked.

" I need your help Gamma Bunta-sama! You see the person in front of you?" Ketsu asked. Gamma Bunta looked down at Naruto. " That is Naruto, he's wanted for murder and he is in the Akatsuki, it is my duty as a shinobi and a good person to take him down. Can you help me?"

" HE'S IN THE AKATSUKI? THAT SMALL FRY? ALRIGHT KETSU, IF YOU SAY SO."

" Humph, this is going to get interesting. This won't be too much of a problem, size won't matter here. You still won't win at all."

Naruto lifted his left hand high into the air, two fingers pointing straight at the black sky full of stars. " Denkou Guffu No Jutsu!"

Suddenly, a small spark of electricity appeared right around the two fingers pointing straight up. Then more streaks of lightning began to appear. Naruto then crouched down low to the ground and swung his left arm with his two fingers still out and swung it around in a circular motion once, so that his two fingers that carried the electricity was about an inch from touching the ground. Then he brought his arm back up again and took his right arm and brought it straight up as his left hand now full of lightning streaks surrounding it came down.

The lighting in his left arm transferred to the air right in front of him spinning at a faster pace every second. Until finally, it became a tornado made of lightning. It kept spinning faster and faster, growing with each moment it spun. Until finally, it was bigger than Gamma Bunta himself.

" This might hurt." Naruto said to Ketsu as he brought his right arm straight out in front of him so that it was pointing straight at the large frog. The tornado just sped at Gamma Bunta and Ketsu.

_POOF_! The frog disappeared at once as soon as they had collided, Ketsu was then sucked in the tornado, spinning around and around getting electrocuted.

Naruto then released his Jutsu and let Ketsu fall from way above back down to the ground.

Ketsu lay there for a moment then got up. " Pretty good. But still won't be good enough."

" Then let us continue." Naruto said without expression. They both jumped up at each other and were about to connect, until there was an interruption.

They both felt it, but couldn't see it, something had passed right between them, just before they were able to hit each other. They stopped and landed back to the ground. They then both looked to their left to see a red haired girl with a bandana.

She wore very weird clothes, and back boots. She wore mostly blue, but everything seemed so mismatched. She also wore black gloves on each hand. " Sorry to be interrupting anything, just thought I'd drop by to have a little fun."

" Yeah, just a little fun." Said another voice. This time it was a man. He had light brown hair. He appeared behind Naruto and Ketsu. They turned around. He wore a very large jacket and regular shorts. He also had a staff on his back.

" We saw a fight, so we decided to join in." Yet another voice spoke, this time, right in front of Ketsu and Naruto, just a few feet away from them.

The man had blue hair, and wore regular shinobi uniform, like what Kakashi usually wore.

" Um. Maybe we weren't interrupting a battle….you guys are in nothing but towels, and there is no water around…" said the girl.

All three of the strangers were not old at all, but very young.

" The Hot spring's water is gone." Ketsu said glaring at them.

" Let us introduce ourselves." Said the Brown haired man. " My name is Hage Ryu. I have trained with the five best samurai's in the world for all of my life. I specialize in the staff."

" My name is Kyozoku. Just Kyozoku. I've been a pirate all of my life." The pirate girl said.

" I'm Sukomi Garou. The three of us make up the Tennoushihai." The blue haired guy said.

" Tennoushihai?" Naruto asked.

" Well, we haven't known each other for that long. But we plan to. There was a large tournament, anybody could enter. People from all around the world came. Americans too. The three tournament winners would become a three man team winning lots of money and the tile of Tennoushihai. We travel around Japan looking for fights. But so far, we haven't found any tough ones. We saw you guys fighting, so we decided to fight. So how bout it? Want a little match?" Garou asked.

" It'll be fun!" Kyozoku said smiling. " Trust me, we're pretty good. You won't regret it. I'm betting we can beat you."

" Um….That was random…" Naruto said. " But no thanks, we would just like to continue our match, or I would like to go home."

" C'mon!" Shouted Ryu pulling out his staff and spinning it in fancy ways.

" Look at it this way, you can either fight back, or let us beat you. It doesn't matter what you do, the outcome will be the same. But we are going to attack." Garou said.

Ryu dashed towards Naruto attempting to strike him on his shoulder. Naruto jumped back but Garou was waiting. He gave a hard kick straight to Naruto's back, sending the blond boy flying. Naruto landed on the ground and got up. He witnessed the two shinobi do the same to Ketsu.

" Looks like we won't be able to win this alone. How bout a team?" Naruto proposed to Ketsu.

" Just as long as I get to kill you afterwards. I'm not going to let these freaks beat me." Ketsu answered angrily.

" Yeah, um…can we put our clothes on first?" Naruto asked. " We've decided to give you guys a challenge."

" Well if you put it that way, then sure, go ahead. Not like it'll make a difference." Garou said.

Ketsu and Naruto then put on their clothes, Naruto with his Akatsuki cloak, and Ketsu with is black and red robes.

" Ok ready!" Naruto said smiling. Kyozoku then suddenly brushed past Naruto appearing in front of him.

" Just like you can tell how we fight by our standing posture, I can tell you how you fight, by what's in your pocket." She said as she held out her arm carrying the beige bag that Chiyobaa had given Naruto.

" Hey! Give that back right now!" Naruto shouted now aggravated.

" I'll give it back to you when you beat us. If you beat us." Kyozoku answered with a grin.

" Well then I guess you brought this upon yourself." Ketsu said. " Let's go."

Ketsu dashed at Ryu who managed to dodge every punch and kick that Ketsu threw. And Ryu also took advantage of every chance that he got, whenever there was an open space, he would take it and strike Ketsu. Naruto was taking on Kyozoku and Garou at the same time.

" Take this! Rasengan!" Ketsu shouted. But Ryu blocked the blue sphere with his staff. He pushed back Ketsu.

" Use something else!" Naruto shouted to Ketsu as he landed a punch to Kyozoku's face. " Yes! Got it back! Take that Kyozoku!" But it was too soon to celebrate, because Garou was still there.

" Huuuuujaaaaaaaaaaa!" Garou shouted as he slammed his fist which held a kunai into Naruto's cheek.

" Naruto!" Ketsu shouted. He rushed to his teammate who was now on the floor, with a whole in his cheek, bleeding badly. Naruto got up and touched his cheek. A green light appeared as the hole closed up and looked as if nothing had happened.

" You're going to pay for that." Naruto said. " This isn't a game anymore."

" You can't do anything anyway. Each one of us are just as strong as each of you. And it's three against two, so how can you win?" Ryu asked.

" Kage Bunshin No Jutsu!" Naruto shouted as many Naruto's appeared surrounding everybody. " Now it's five hundred and two against three. I guess you're outnumbered now." All the Naruto's said smiling. Then they all rushed in against their opponents.

_Poof, Poof, Poof, Poof, Poof, Poof, Poof_! There were POOFS everywhere as each one of the Bunshins failed to defeat their enemy. Ketsu watched in amazement.

For a second, Ketsu thought that Naruto's amazing Jutsu was going to be a waste, since none of the Naruto's were even landing a blow. But soon enough, Ketsu heard Naruto's voice, loud and clear shouting, " Ginpai No Jutsu!"

All of a sudden, Ketsu jumped up to the tip of the tallest tree nearest to him. He barely managed to avoid the incoming spikes that came up about six feet high, and were extremely sharp. Every Naruto disappeared with a poof. And all Ketsu could see was spikes all the way to the horizon and beyond.

Then the spikes sunk back into the ground.

" Wow, pretty good…" Garou said panting. Ketsu looked down at him as well as the other two of his teammates. They were all bleeding slightly with ripped clothes.

" But you're going to have to do better than that to beat us." Ryu said smiling.

" The Bunshins were a great distraction. As were the spikes?" Naruto said as he appeared right in front of the Tennoushihai.

" A distraction?" Kyozoku asked surprised.

" Precisely. You always need to have a backup plan if it doesn't work. You're trapped don't you see?" Naruto explained.

They looked down at their feet which was now glued to the ground with an invisible substance. But it was strong, because none of them were able to move their feet.

" Now all of you are trapped, and I still have a teammate, as well as myself. And that leaves you….powerless."

" Great strategy. But as you said, always have a backup plan." Garou said. " and here's mine." Then he held his breath and frowned.

He became angrier and angrier growling. Until finally, Naruto and Ketsu could see the outline aura of Garou's lime green chakra. Garou's pupils then turned from circles to slits. And he managed to break free of Naruto's binding spell, with just brute force. Garou went down on all fours, and his chakra overwhelmed him taking shape of a wolf, a wolf with eight tails.

" A demon eh?" Naruto asked. " This is going to get really hard…" Garou's transformation was still not complete, he grew fangs that reached all the way down past his chin. His blue hair extended to the bottom of his neck. His nails transformed to claws, and he became much more muscular. His ears also became slightly pointy.

" I'm impressed, let's see how well your demon powers work out for you. Let's play shall we?" Naruto asked. Garou then rushed at Naruto, running on all fours. Naruto did the same, they each ran at the same speed. But Naruto ran on his two legs. Garou jumped up about ten meters before they collided. He flew through the air like a bullet, tripling his speed. Before Naruto took one step, Garou had already covered the ten meters that were left and was at Naruto's Chest.

He landed on the Akatsuki member and dug his claws onto his cloak and skin. Then pulling his hands out ripping his flesh and leaving huge claw marks in blood. Garou then jumped back still growling. Naruto got up and looked at his bloody chest.

" Powerful now aren't we?" Naruto said frowning. " But once again, you have fallen for my trap, a different one this time."

" WHAT?" Garou asked angrily screaming. " I'M NOT IN ANY TRAP! WHERE?"

BOOM! The tiny red Rasengan which Ketsu had gently lay on the grass exploded as Garou stepped on it while looking around.

Yet another crater was formed. Naruto stood next to Ketsu as they watched Garou get up not in demon form any longer. Since Kyozoku and Ryu were released from the binding Jutsu, they rushed to help Garou. They all smiled.

" This was fun. A worthy battle indeed." Kyozoku exclaimed happily.

" Truly." Ryu agreed.

" Yeah, this was fun, we should do this again sometime." Naruto said nodding.

" Very well, until the next time we meet….friends." Garou said.

" You can call me Naruto, and him Ketsu." Naruto said. The Tennoushihai left the two teenager shinobi to themselves.

" So what now?" Ketsu asked.

" You wanted to fight me didn't you? I don't know, I'll let you decide." Naruto said.

" I think I can let you go and make an exception this time. But this will be the first and last. Next time, no interruptions, and you will go down." Ketsu said.

" I expect you to be stronger the next time we meet." Naruto said smiling as they both parted opposite ways.

Ketsu finally arrived at the village, his clothes dirty.

" Ketsu! Why did choose to stay behind?" Jiraiya asked shouting and scolding his apprentice.

" I felt like a bath." Ketsu answered.

" MUCH GOOD IT DID, LOOK AT YOU! What were you doing?"

" Not much."

Jiraiya sighed. " Ketsu, I know you know how to take care of yourself, but I cannot risk you going anywhere alone. Don't forget, there are S-class criminals on our tail. Just because we completed missions in the past, doesn't mean that everything is alright. You must be alert at all times. I don't want you to use that Jutsu I taught you, not unless it is completely necessary…"

" I know…" Ketsu said frowning.

" Let's rest, you haven't had that yet…"

---

" You're late." Itachi said coldly.

" I know, I was….held back." Naruto said.

" Any problems?"

" No not really."

" Good, because I have your next mission for you. Take a look at this." Itachi said holding out a folder and handing it to Naruto.

" What's this?" Naruto asked opening the folder.

" A file of you victim. Your mission is to bring him back here, alive. He is one of the very few demons that are still out there. We need to extract it as soon as possible."

Naruto looked at the file. He flipped through the pages until he found a large photo.

" His name….Sukomi Garou." Itachi said. " You start tomorrow. Remember, bring him back here, alive."

A/N: Thanx guyz, the next chapter won't be out very soon, I'm taking a trip so I'll update asap, but it'll take a long time. Sorry and later! Tell me how you like the story so far.


	9. The End of Simplicity

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Chapter Nine: The End of Simplicity

" There are so many fighting style's. And I only know very few. But of the few I know, I can still put them to use, even mix them to create my own." Ten-ten explained to Neji, Ketsu, and Gai as they dashed through the forest already on their next mission.

" That's very interesting, but stop!" Gai shouted as they all came to an abrupt halt. " Listen…." He put his right hand to his corresponding ear.

" Sounds like…" Neji said.

" Shh…They're listening too us as well." Ketsu said. He put his hands together forming a few hand seals. " Meimei No Jutsu." Ketsu whispered. Completely disappearing.

" I must admit, I didn't expect him to be this good." Gai said. " I know that he will find them, then we rush in to help him, as for now, stay quiet."

---

_PSHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH_! The booming sound of the waterfalls surrounding the cliff Naruto was on gave him the solitude he needed. He felt calm, as if he had escaped from reality, just for a few moments. But he knew in his heart that he would eventually have to face one of the only people he could actually even come close to calling friend. Even the solitude could not make him forget that. It staggered in his mind, like a sharp pain that wouldn't go away.

It was broad daylight. The scenery was beautiful beyond words. There were three waterfalls surrounding the one huge natural pillar still standing in the middle of it. The space on the pillar was about fifteen feet by fifteen feet. Naruto just sat at the edge letting his legs hang.

The pillar was extremely tall, at least a hundred feet. At the very bottom, was a lake, where the three waterfalls surrounding the pillar spilled into. The water was so clear, so shiny.

Naruto just sat, staring at the very bottom. Twirling a blue twig made completely of Chakra in his hands. Occasionally, he would make it disappear and reappear in his other hand.

There was another cliff, about ten feet away from the pillar where Naruto was. That cliff had the three streams where the waterfalls would come down from. In between the streams was complete rock. The big cliff led on for miles outwards, as far as the eye could see.

" I suppose you like to come up here sometimes too huh?" A very familiar voice said startling Naruto completely.

Naruto turned around to find the very person he didn't want to ever see again, Garou.

" What are you doing here?" Naruto asked not moving.

" I like to come here a little. It's pretty nice. What about you?"

" I needed to think about some things. But now that you're here….I…" Naruto said, stopping in mid-sentence.

" You what?" Garou asked.

" I can't let you go." Naruto finished standing up facing Garou.

The blue-haired shinobi only laughed and said, " You want to get beaten so soon that bad huh? I'll tell you what, since I'm merciful, I'll let you go, but just for this time. The next time, we'll have a match just like we did three days ago."

" No."

" Well, if you insist, I guess I could beat you again if you want it that bad." Garou said smiling.

" You won't win this time." Naruto said with a cold solemn voice.

" Oh? What makes you so sure?"

" Because….this time, it's not just a duel. This time, it's serious. I have to bring you back."

" Bring me back? What? Where? To who?" Garou asked looking extremely confused.

" That's not information I'm allowed to address. The matter is, that we are going to battle, right here, right now. Come at me with all you've got, because, if I win, you won't live." Naruto said.

" What? So one moment we're having fun, and the next, it's a death match? Well this is pretty sudden. But I can see that you're are not joking. If you say so, I will give it my all, but you won't come out of this alive. I'm giving you one chance, no more, back down, or you will die."

" I can't let you go…………." Naruto said again. " I'm very sorry, but it is my obligation and my duty as what I am, to do this. You won't win, but please, don't go easy on me at all. One simple mistake, and it's your life here. Are you ready?" Naruto asked getting ready to fight.

" Just one second." Garou said as he pulled out two belts from inside his robe each holding about fifteen weights in them. He threw them down into the lake way below them. The splash went very high, and then Garou positioned himself ready to fight. " Yeah, now I'm ready, let's start."

Garou ran two steps, and jumped up into the air, practically disappearing with the speed he was going at. He put his hands together and shouted, " Kage Bunshin No Jutsu!"

_Poof_! Only one bunshin appeared and it pushed away against Garou's foot. The bunshin flew towards the large cliff disappearing as it went into one of the waterfalls.

The Garou left still in the air came down and attempted to land a side kick to Naruto's head. He blocked with his left arm and pushed Garou far back, even off the tall pillar they were on.

Garou was now in the air, about to fall. Suddenly, another Naruto quickly came up from under Garou and stabbed his back with a Kunai.

" Ahh!" Garou shouted. The tip of the dagger appeared through Garou's robe, staining it with his blood.

_Poof_! The Naruto in the air disappeared as Garou was left alone in the air with his eyes wide open and a kunai in his body.

Poof! The Garou in the air went away with a few clouds of smoke and nobody was nowhere to be seen.

" What?" Naruto asked completely confused. But before he could react, two hands grabbed his ankles from under him. Garou was in the ground!

" Always have a backup plan! Now doesn't that sound familiar?" Garou asked smiling.

" Don't play around with me!" Naruto shouted angrily. " KAI!"

BOOM! Naruto exploded destroying the tip of the pillar as well as the Bunshin of Garou that was holding his ankles.

" That was a Bunshin too? How could that be?" Naruto asked appearing on top of the pillar once again.

" Just like you created four, I created just as many! Oh by the way, the other one is gone." Garou's voice said.

" You're enjoying this aren't you?" Naruto shouted looking around.

" You can tell can't you?" Garou said half laughing.

" Where are you?"

" Here." Garou appeared right behind Naruto wrapping his right arm around Naruto's neck, and placing it on his left bicep. Garou's left hand came behind Naruto's head and pushed down with his right hand on his left.

" This will make you fall asleep in a few seconds." Garou said.

" That's….all I….need!" Naruto said. Naruto quickly jerked his two arms straight out in front of him.

Garou was caught off guard. His eyes widened at Naruto's genius move. He noticed that in each of Naruto's finger's were chakra strings. And by jerking his arms straight out, he activated the booby trap that Garou had fallen right into.

Just then, hundreds of Kunai appeared from the sky, going straight for Garou and Naruto.

Garou let go of Naruto and tried to escape. But he then realized that he couldn't move his feet. He looked down, and he wasn't able to move his feet.

"Found yourself glued to the ground just like last time haven't you?" Naruto asked. Now it was his turn to smile.

" You planned this!"

But it was too late, the Kunai connected, and there were two _Poofs_.

The real Naruto appeared from inside the pillar, he got out of the ground and said, " There were five bunshins. Just so you know. But I see that my plan failed. So where are you really? Because truthfully, this is my real self. We are both fighting with strategy. The question is, who thought back far enough? There is only one Bunshin left, and then your plan is gone. If that fails, what are you going to do next? Make more Bunshins?"

" How about you let me worry about that." Garou said appearing right in front of him.

" Yeah," Another Garou said appearing behind him. _Poof_. That Garou disappeared.

" Now it's just you and me, so let's get serious shall we?" Garou asked.

" Who said I wasn't serious in the first place?" Naruto asked. Then he stood still, and Garou watched, as Naruto's eyes went to the back of his head, so that there was only completely white.

" Now!" Garou shouted rushing at Naruto. He punched his opponent but it only disappeared with smoke. He look around and saw that there were lots and lots of Naruto's standing sideways on the large cliff that carried the three waterfalls. They all were standing still with there eyes all white.

" What is this?" Garou asked.

_Poof, Poof, Poof, Poof, Poof, Poof, Poof, Poof, Poof, Poof, Poof, Poof, Poof, Poof, Poof ,Poof_! The rest of Garou's bunshins disappeared from within the pillar.

Then Naruto's Bunshins did the same. " Just evening the odds out a little bit." He said. " Now the numbers are the same."

Now they both stood on the pillar, facing each other just like they had before.

" Basically nothing happened, we just wasted our chakra and we're right back where we started." Garou said, stating the obvious.

" Well, I guess we're going to have to try different things aren't we?" Naruto said panting.

" You know what? You're right, I guess I should step up even more. But it won't be fair, seeing as how you wasted unnecessary chakra on that last move just to destroy a few bunshins. So this will probably end it." Garou said.

He stood up straight, and brought his right hand to his mouth. He bit his thumb so that blood came out. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He took a deep breath once more.

Naruto just stood there and watched as Garou formed a set of hand seals with his eyes still closed. " Kuchiyose no Jutsu…" He said softly. He squatted down and still with his eyes closed he lightly placed his hand on the ground.

For a few seconds, nothing happened, and Naruto still just stood there, watching in confusion at what Garou was going to do.

Then, after a little while longer, a little more bit of patience, a lime green chakra surrounded Garou's hand. The same color chakra that he had when he went demon.

Then, the green chakra left his hand and circled around constantly in the air in front of both of them forming what seemed to be the shape of a dog. Naruto waited more and saw that the Chakra was actually created something. Yes, that was his summon, a wolf. The wolf was pretty big for a normal wolf. It went up to Garou's chest. And he was a full grown adult.

The aspect that this wolf had that no other ordinary would had was its two horns on the top of its head.

" Ookami-sama. I'm glad you could come." Garou said finally standing up after opening his eyes and bowing.

" Anything for a friend. I can already sense that you're having a bit of trouble." Ookami said looking straight at Naruto.

" Not really, I just want to end this, it's a fight to the death. Apparently he, wants to take me back or something like that." Garou said shrugging his shoulders.

" Hmm…Yes I think I've heard something like that. The Akatsuki. But there's no way that a simple boy could be part of that organization of only S rank criminals." the wolf said.

" Don't be so sure." Naruto said. " I suppose that since you will die, then there's no harm in telling. You are one of the last few people, who have demons inside of them. What we do is, we capture those people, and extract the demons from them. It results in death of the victim. That is why we need you. But how you are able to control yours is a mystery to me." Naruto said, finally revealing his true intentions.

" Well, some people call it a curse, infact, most people do. But I see it as a gift, that I am blessed with. Ookami-sama here, was sealed inside of me, by my grandfather. Who happened to be Ookami's master. Together, my grandfather and Ookami rampaged through nations, ruling everything. Until a fatal disease came upon my grandfather. As a baby of course, I had no choice to accept him or not. But I was the only last hope to carry on my grandfather's legacy. So he handed Ookami to me. I grew up with my mom, just until she was killed because they thought that she was under the influence of Ookami. She was trying to help me escape the village I was in. We were wanted dead both of us. So me and Ookami grew up together, training together, learning from each other." Garou explained. " And that's why I can't let you just take my life, and my one true companion away from me."

" What about your father? I mean, why didn't your grandfather give the wolf to him?" Naruto asked.

" His father was one of the men who tried to stop his grandfather from taking over, so he was killed. That's all there is to it. So what's the plan Garou?" Ookami asked.

" The same routine." Garou said wiping his hands. Then he jumped on top of Ookami's back.

" Let's go!" The wolf shouted. He jumped in the air and disappeared.

" I've got to watch out for this one, it's two against one…" Naruto said very cautiously. He was wearing regular shinobi clothes, so he didn't look like an Akatsuki member at all.

They reappeared to Naruto's left in the air. But this time, Garou was standing on Ookami's back. Naruto barely caught a glimpse of Garou jumping off the wolf and then both of them disappearing once more.

Ookami appeared behind Naruto trying to swipe his head off with his large paws. But Naruto was able dodge it easily and he jumped up to the very top of the cliff. In between two of the streams that led to the waterfalls.

Garou appeared on the pillar next to Ookami, they both just looked up at Naruto.

" I think if you are going to try a little harder, maybe I should too!" Naruto shouted over the roar of the water. " I'm going to use nature as my advantage." Naruto then said to himself. He formed a set of hand seals then shouting, " Mizu Gyuujiru No Jutsu!"

Then, the waterfalls stopped. Just stopped moving, they stayed exactly where they were, down to the last drop.

" Ohhhh….Shoooot….." Garou said as he jumped up on Ookami's back.

" Fishy-san, this one's for you." Naruto said as he threw his hands forward and the water started moving again. Except this time, fifty times faster, and in the exact direction of Naruto's opponents.

A split second before the water clashed with the pillar, Ookami with Garou on his back jumped up and appeared above.

Naruto lifted his arms and the water rose still maintaining the same speed towards the Wolf and Shinobi. " If the only way you can go is up, then it's over. You'll have to come down eventually." But when Naruto finished talking, he noticed something.

He saw Ookami, but where was Garou?

" Looking for me-" But he was cut off as the water enveloped him right behind Naruto.

Naruto still concentrated on getting the demon though. Naruto raised his left arm and a thick strand of water connected from his arm straight to Ookami. " Mizu Gokusha!"

The water strand expanded into a ball and surrounded the wolf.

" Now you are trapped in my water prison. OCEANIC COFFIN!"

The water ball prison that Ookami was in just compacted and completely crushed him so that he disappeared with a _Poof_!

Garou washed up on top of the pillar completely soaked, but still alive and conscious.

" As I said before, go all out. But you didn't listen to the words I said. Now, it will be over soon, you will have the demon extracted, and you will be gone, deprived from life, and your precious pet!" Naruto said coldly.

" YOUR WRONG! Because I'll never give up! I won't lose this battle! I can't! I just can't! My life is not what's most valuable to me. It's my friend, Ookami, if I give him to you, then he'll just be used for power! And I won't let that happen! Why are you doing this?"

" You fight for what you believe in! You fight to keep your one true companion alive! Is that wrong?" Naruto asked shouting. The water was completely stopped now.

" NO! Of course not!"

" Then what I'm doing is not wrong either! Don't you see? Why can't YOU understand? Why can't ANYBODY understand for a change! For once! The Akatsuki is the only life I've ever known, they are my companions, the only people that I could call family! And I fight for them, just like you fight for Ookami! We both fight for the same cause! So how can you call what you are doing justified? If what You're doing is the right thing, then so is mine! I have no choice but to do my duty!" Naruto shouted.

" NOOOO! How can you even compare our situations? Look! Look at what you are doing! You are capturing people who did nobody any harm, it's not any of our faults that we have demons inside of us. But because of it, we have to suffer? That's what you are doing, you are killing people just for the sake of power! Can't you see what's going on? They are using you!" Garou shouted.

" That can't be true!" Naruto said. " We fight for the same causes! I know we do."

" If you can't see the truth, then I'll beat it into you, I'll MAKE you see the truth!" Garou shouted as he jumped up into the air.

" Your anger has driven you off balance, you cannot win this if you are uncontrollable." Naruto said remaining calm.

Garou landed on top of the still water facing Naruto in fury. " What's your goal, huh Naruto? Tell me your goal!"

" I've already told you, it's to bring you back to the Akatsuki alive." Naruto said.

" Alive huh? So what happens if I do this? Tell me!" Garou screamed as he whipped out a Kunai and extended his arms grasping the dagger in both hands.

" NOOOOOOOOO!" Naruto shouted.

The kunai sunk in, blood fell to the ground. Both of them were stabbed. The kunai had gone completely through Naruto's body and into Garou's.

" What? Why?" Garou asked as Naruto pulled the Kunai out of both of them.

" Be…cause….I…..I….Have to..Bring……..you back…." Naruto said with one eye closed and the other half open. His right arm grasped his wound which was now leaking an uncontrollable amount of blood.

Naruto then grabbed Garou's wrist and let the water move freely, and let nature resume its regular position.

" I'm taking you back, now!" Naruto said as he kneed Garou in the stomach knocking him out.

" If you put chakra into your blows, they become much stronger. Hold on, stay alive, and I must do the same…" Naruto said as he headed back to the Akatsuki base.

---

Jiraiya let the wind blow through his thick white hair. He was on the very tallest rooftop in all of Konoha.

" Remember when we used to come up here? You, me, and Orochimaru?" Jiraiya asked Tsunade who was also standing with him just watching.

" Of course, it was moments like that that I cherished the most. I didn't have exactly the best company, but I was still happy. Boy, have come long ways from when we were kids haven't we?" Tsunade asked.

" mmm." Jiraiya said, indicating that he agreed.

" Anyways, I think I'm going to turn in, it's getting late." Tsunade said as she jumped down from the building and went home.

Jiraiya sat there for hours, just about two hours before the first tint of dawn.

" Who's there? There's no need to hide, I can sense you." Jiraiya said standing up looking around.

" Well then I suppose I won't leave you with the burden of trying to find me then. My mission is clear anyways." A figure said as it stepped out of the shadows.

The person was wearing a completely black cloak, with a black hood. Nothing was seen except clothes. Until the person put down its hood.

It was a man, brown haired man. He had dark blue eyes and that was basically all that was even remotely protruding.

" Who are you? And why are you here?" Jiraiya asked frowning.

" My name is Amatari Sora. And I've come looking for one of the three Sannin, goes by the name of Jiraiya. I presume you are the one?"

" And if I am?"

" Then your time has come." Sora said getting ready to fight.

" Do you know who you are dealing with? They don't call us the three Sannin for nothing." Jiraiya said attempting to intimidate his opponent.

Sora made no facial expression change whatsoever. " Your time has come." he repeated.

" Very well." Jiraiya said.

Sora rushed in throwing a couple of Kunai at Jiraiya's feet.

But he simply jumped high up into the air. " Now why would you want to throw it at my feet?" Jiraiya asked out of curiosity.

" To get you right where I want you, in the air." Sora said right under Jiraiya. He jumped up right after his opponent pulling out another kunai.

Jiraiya looked down quickly and moved slightly back so Sora could come up level with him. As soon as his opponent was in front of him he was about to give him a kick to push himself away, until a second Sora grabbed his arms from behind and held him still.

Meanwhile, the Sora with the Kunai drove the double-edged weapon into Jiraiya's stomach. Then they both backed away and landed at the same time along with their bleeding opponent.

Jiraiya clutched his stomach with both hands and said, " Ahh…how did I fall for an easy trick?"

Sora, still keeping the exact same expression said, " You didn't."

_Poof_! That Jiraiya disappeared and the real Jiraiya came out from the same place that Sora was in before.

" Who do you work for?" Jiraiya said throwing two kunai at both Sora's.

Both kunai just went through them. Sora said nothing.

" What village are you from?" Jiraiya asked. His opponent still said nothing. " Well maybe this will make you talk!" he shouted as he rushed in between both Sora's and tried to kick both of them at the same time. But his legs just simply went through them just like the kunai before him.

The weird thing was, both Sora's caught his legs while they were still inside of them.

" What?" Jiraiya shouted as he attempted to push off their hands, but it was no use, they just grabbed his ankles and held on tight so Jiraiya couldn't escape.

Instead, Jiraiya put his hands on the floor so that he was now upside down with his legs extended outwards to his sides. Then he picked up his legs along with the Sora's who were still holding on. After he had both his opponents and his legs in the air, he pushed off the ground with his hands so that they were now all in the air.

Jiraiya continued to ascend with his opponents grasping his ankles. He then began to do flips to rise him even higher in the air. Once he was high enough, he bit his thumb and then formed hand seals in each hand. Then he squatted down and open handedly struck each of the Soras' heads.

" Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" Jiraiya shouted. _Poof_! Then his hands on his opponents' heads suddenly turned into dragon heads that now had Soras' heads in its mouths.

But even without their heads, the cloaked body's still held on. They didn't disappear, they didn't move or change position at all.

Jiraiya, now with dragon heads as hands landed back on the ground, the bodies still holding on.

" What kind of trick is this?" Jiraiya asked looking around.

" It's not a trick." Tsunade said as she appeared behind a statue.

" Tsunade? You are in this?" Jiraiya asked.

" As am I!" Ketsu shouted. He was behind Jiraiya.

" Ketsu? That can't be possible." Jiraiya said almost with tears in his eyes.

" All my life you treated me like your son. And I told you that I never needed a father! Well I have news for you, I found my father! And I don't need you any longer! You've just been a burden to me!" Ketsu shouted screaming.

Jiraiya just stared at the person he had been training for ten years. He was silent for a moment, then started laughing. " Had enough fun yet? I know I have. Release me from this Genjutsu."

" WHAT IF I DON'T?" Sora's voice said coming from no particular location.

" You're trapped either way." The real Jiraiya said behind Sora who was using Genjutsu on a Bunshin. Sora looked around and saw that there were Jiraiya's everywhere, on top of every building, all of them facing Sora.

The Jiraiya under the trance finally recovered and joined the crowd.

" How do you expect to win?" One of the Jiraiya's asked him.

But Sora still kept quiet. He just started with one of the Jiraiya's working his way up, slicing through each of them with his Kunai.

After countless failed attempts to even lay a hand on Sora, everybody stopped.

" That was your first mistake! Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" Jiraiya shouted as all of the Jiraiya's left formed the same number of hand seals after biting their thumb. Then the hit the ground and with a poof came a large frog each the size of Jiraiya himself. There was one frog for every Jiraiya.

The Jiraiya's jumped on top of the frogs and they all charged directly at Sora. Sora jumped up so that everybody would clash together, then he stepped on the heads of some of his opponents slashing at them so they would disappear.

" Let's stop this, what do you want?" Jiraiya asked after the rest of him had been defeated.

" Your blood." Sora said.

" A little suspicious don't you think?" Jiraiya asked with a smile.

" That's why I can't leave you alive. This may come back to bite me." Sora said.

" I see…" Jiraiya said scratching his chin.

Sora then looked up at the sky, squinted a little, then looked directly at Jiraiya again. " I am going to have to end this now. Feel lucky that you have made it this far. Usually, people that are very, very skilled fall at the Genjutsu. And if not, it's over after I defeat them with simple Taijutsu. But you, you have gotten past all of that. But there is one thing that nobody has ever survived, and only a few have survived to see it. So consider yourself a real shinobi, but the road for you ends here." Sora said.

Then he lifted up his right sleeve up to his bicep. And then he lifted up his left sleeve to reveal the most unusual thing Jiraiya had ever seen. Sora's left arm appeared to be made of what looked like black rock. But with cracks all over it. The cracks were very noticeable, for they gave off a small bit of light. The light was orange. His arm looked like a volcano. Totally normal except the texture.

" What is that?" Jiraiya asked frowning and staring intently.

" My clan's blood limit. Now it ends here." Sora said as he lifted up both his arms with open hands. Suddenly, a very bright white light appeared floating in Sora's left hand.

He then cupped the small light with both his hands for a moment then brought them back down. This time, there were two lights, one in each hand.

" Let's see how long you can last!" Sora said smiling as he threw the small light with his right hand. As soon as it left his hand, it immediately replenished, it didn't even take a second.

The light sped straight toward Jiraiya's head. He barely managed to dodge it by a few inches. But the light circled back again and again. Jiraiya moved around, jumped around, and dashed around, the light would still follow him.

Until finally he managed to pick up a large rock the size of his fists combined, and threw it at the light. As soon as they both collided, the rock disintegrated completely. And the light was gone.

" So that's what it does huh?" Jiraiya asked panting.

" That was just one, let's see how long you can last, when they just keep coming. This doesn't waste any of my chakra, and I can keep throwing them as they automatically follow your head. They won't stop until they've hit a target. They're fast too, so how long can you last?" Sora asked again. This time, he constantly threw more lights straight at his opponent, not stopping even for a moment's break. They just kept coming and replenishing.

Meanwhile on Jiraiya's end, he knew that he would not be able to dodge much more. He had to be alert for each one that came and followed him. He had very few options. First, there were no rocks on the roof, the first one he found was a fluke. Second, they kept coming, and he couldn't get rid of them.

His only alternative was to lead them directly toward the person supplying the attack, Sora. He swiftly dodged his way over to his opponent, carefully moving back and forth, side to side, doing flips in the air and rolling on the ground just to avoid the lights.

When he was just a few feet away from Sora, he saw that his opponent was now doing something different.

" Can you take this?" Sora shouted in fury as he put his hands together and a light four times larger than the rest headed even faster toward him.

Jiraiya could not make this, he had hundreds of lights after him, as well as one very large one. He knew this was the end, but he wouldn't leave empty handed.

BOOM! Jiraiya sacrificed his left leg with an exploding tag to get rid of half the lights. He made his way over to Sora and grasped his cloak. He then shouted, " Kai!" as the exploding tags on Jiraiya's hands which were holding Sora activated and exploded. At the same time the lights collided with them and everything was black…

---

" Did you acquire it?" Said a deep voice.

" Yes, my lord." Sora said bowing his head in deep respect. " Here it is." He held out a vile full of blood inside. " The Frog Sennin's blood."

" Perfect. Now we only need one more…"

A/N: Sorry I took so long to update, but plz review. And trust me, I've got this whole thing planned out, get ready for some new stuff! It's gonna be great xD. Muhahahahahaha….yeah, but plz update, and the next chapter will be coming out shortly. Plz review and review!


	10. Demon Unleashed

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Chapter Ten: Demon Unleashed

" Dead?" Tsunade asked as she banged her hands on the desk crushing it into pieces from the force. " Dead? How? Who? What time? Do we have any footage?"

" No Hokage-sama, there is no footage. The only proof we found was the remains of his body…" Shizune reported very tensely.

" Remains?" Tsunade asked frowning, her voice dropped down to a whisper, as did Shizune's.

" Yes, they were only able to tell it was him from his blood samples, and his head gear. I'm very sorry. What is on your mind?"

" I'm wondering how Ketsu's going to react. The death of Jiraiya may lead to cause great trouble in the village. Who knows what will become of him now." Tsunade said lay back in her chair.

---

The gates of Konoha opened finally as Gai, Neji, Ten-ten, and Ketsu passed through them and into the village after a tiring voyage. The sky was dark, and nobody was feeling very joyful.

" I sense mourning…" Gai said as he walked off towards the Hokage's building without a word.

" What are you going to do Ketsu?" Ten-ten asked right before she left.

" I must find my sensei, I know he will give me the details as to what's going on here." Ketsu said as he rushed off to find Jiraiya.

---

" So what are we to do with Ketsu? When he finds out, he may leave the village. I've seen his power, and I can tell you right now, that he is truly Jiraiya's apprentice. If he decides to massacre some people, I'm sure he can do it without any trouble whatsoever. That boy could probably take on the ANBU single-handedly. We adults will have to step in, and it won't be easy." Gai said

" Only time will tell, but for now, Shizune, send a squadron of ANBU members to keep a very close watch on him. But tell them to be unnoticeable, Ketsu might need his space. But don't let him escape this village, and if something happens, tell them to stop him." Tsunade informed.

" Hai!" Shizune said saluting the Hokage.

----

Ketsu looked up at the sky and at the falling rain. His clothes were now completely soaked. He just kept silent, letting the drops fall on him over and over again, not even flinching when one came to his eye.

" Why don't you come out and stop hiding?" Ketsu asked, for he knew he was being pursued. The six ANBU members took off their jutsu's and appeared on the rooftops as well.

" Our orders are to keep a close watch on you." One of the ANBU member said.

" Does Konoha not trust me that much?" Ketsu said with a small smile. " Well then, I'll show them how I feel." He said as he turned to face them. His smile quickly faded and he started walking toward them..

The ANBU members stepped back a bit. " Uh…We were supposed to intervene if anything were to happen."

" Like what?" Ketsu asked.

" Don't play dumb, you already know the answer."

" Well let me ask you one question." Ketsu said as he stopped just about a foot away from the speaker. " What would you do, if you were in my position. The person who was you only friend, a father to you just suddenly disappeared, totally slaughtered, and the killer escaped. Tell me….how….would…you……..**FEEL!**"

Ketsu all of a sudden reacted with the last word that he screamed. He drove his fist into the ANBU member's face sending him fly off the rooftops. One ANBU member jumped off to go get him. The rest of them got in their fighting positions.

" We will not hesitate to bring you down!" A woman's voice shouted.

Ketsu sighed. " Your right, this was stupid of me…I'm just going to leave this city, for good…."

" We cannot let you do that either, as of now, you are a threat to civilians as well anybody outside this village. If you cooperate, we will guide you to some living quarters that you may stay in for a few days. But for now, you are restricted to many things, leaving this village above all." The woman said. " Again, we will not hesitate to bring you down, you are clearly out numbered, don't make a stupid decision."

Ketsu looked down at the ground, then up at the sky. Then he asked, " Let me see the remains of him, please let me have at least that much, I wish to say goodbye."

They all thought for a moment, then the woman said, " Very well. But remember, there is not much left of him, so please bear with us."

" Of course." Ketsu said as he followed them through the village.

Ten-ten saw Ketsu walking by so she went to walk by him. " Ketsu, what's going on?"

" We're going to see the remains of Jiraiya." Ketsu said not changing his sad facial expression.

Ten-ten gasped and put her hands over her mouth. She remembered that Ketsu came with Jiraiya, and that the old man had said something about being with his apprentice for over ten years now. She felt pity over Ketsu, so she remained at his side.

They finally arrived to a large building. They all entered a series of doors and small rooms. The place felt gloomy and full of death. Until finally they all stopped at a large bronze door.

" Please, give us some time alone." Ketsu said as he opened the door to a small room which held a small closed coffin. " Ten-ten, come."

She followed him and into the room they went and the doors closed behind them.

" I'm so sorry Ketsu, I-" Ten-ten was interrupted by Ketsu who shushed her.

" This takes patience, I must concentrate." Ketsu said as he opened the coffin to see some bones and rotting flesh along with white hair, ripped clothes, and Jiraiya's head gear.

Ten-ten put her hands to her mouth again as tears came down her cheeks. She then witnessed Ketsu place both of his hands slightly over the remains, just so that they weren't touching.

All was silent for a moment, then Ketsu whispered with his eyes still closed, " Genzou Keiji…"

" Ketsu, what are you doing?" Ten-ten asked very quietly, however, Ketsu did not answer her, he didn't even budge. He just stayed with his eyes closed for a few more moments.

When he finally opened them, his eyes looked red. " I'm very tired," he said. " I think I'll go to sleep…"

They left the building and Ten-ten went home. But before they left the room, Ten-ten asked Ketsu what had happened.

He only said, " If a vulture kills a canary, does that give the vulture the right to die as well?" But she did not understand what he meant by that.

---

" TSUNADE-SAMA!" Shizune screamed at the top of her lungs.

" What? What is it?" Tsunade asked seeming very troubled. She had one look at Shizune's worried face and she knew, she knew that Ketsu was gone.

" Now try your best to recall what he said to you." Tsunade said the next morning while she interrogated Ten-ten.

" Um, I'm not sure. It was something about a vulture killing and then he asked me if it had the right to die…" Ten-ten responded.

Tsunade thought for a moment, then said, " revenge. That's what he wants, but how does he know who killed Jiraiya? There is no way to tell."

" Actually, he performed some sort of Jutsu when we were with Jiraiya's remains. Then he looked really tired, and we left."

" I will go get him back!" Shizune said saluting the Hokage. " Give me five team members and I will bring him back within three days!"

" Very well…" Tsunade allowed.

BOOM! An explosion was heard coming from the outside. Then came another, BOOM, followed by many others. BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM!

Everybody went outside to see smoke all over Konoha.

" It looks like rescuing Ketsu will have to wait! I'm sorry Tsunade-sama! But the village needs our help now!" Ten-ten shouted as she and Shizune rushed off to help nearby civilians.

Tsunade looked at the sky, then smiled. " This is exactly what he planned for."

---

" Can I go now? I don't really want to see this part…I never like watching this part." Naruto asked Itachi after he had brought back Garou.

" Very well, I know that you heal very fast, but you should be careful not to over exert yourself right now, I know that you had many wounds." Itachi said.

" Itachi-san, don't worry about me, I'll be fine. I'm just going to go around for a while."

Naruto wandered into the forest, wondering what he should do. He felt so guilty leaving his friend to die, not even brave enough to witness his last moments. He knew there was no going back now. It was too late. Plus, the Akatsuki was his family, not a random person that he had fought only once, his family had taken care of him. But Naruto still did not know why.

He felt fatigued from the battle he had just won, but he didn't feel like he had won it. But that they both lost. He could not look back on this, the more he thought about it, the more he was hurt. Why did he feel like this? He had had missions like this before! So why now? Naruto wandered farther and farther into the forest until he collapsed and knocked out.

---

Ketsu looked around, he didn't want to seem suspicious, but he couldn't but look it when he wore an oversized coat that made him totally hidden. It had been four hours since he left the village of Konoha, for good. He didn't ever want to go back there.

He just wanted to kill the person responsible for his misery, his depression. By asking around, he had gathered a few clues, well, enough to lead him to his prey.

He found out that a man in a black cloak and brown hair had traveled southeast from the town he was last in. It was days ago when they saw him. But he knew, that the man would not go straight to his hideout, he would make a few turns to lose followers. So instead of heading southeast, he headed north. The town he was just in up north, said that they too had seen him head even more north, about one hour ago. Ketsu sped up and tripled his speed. He wanted to be able to catch this killer.

Ketsu had traveled around this area before. Before him and Jiraiya came to Konoha, before the incident had happened, when Ketsu's life was good with just him and his sensei training day and night, doing missions constantly to get money.

Ketsu could remember it as clear as day, the memory he had when he learned a very precious Jutsu, handed on from the fourth to Jiraiya to him. It was a few years ago, when Ketsu was about twelve years old. They were both on a mission, but their only suspect was murdered. So Jiraiya asked to see the body, and it was there when he taught Ketsu the Jutsu. Genzou Kenji.

The Jutsu was not hard to learn, but Ketsu could not use it very well. The first few times he tried were failed attempts. But he didn't give up, he kept on trying and practicing.

Genzou Kenji, the ability to witness the person's death from a third-person view. A truly amazing Jutsu, but it had its consequences. Using the Jutsu would quickly drain the chakra of the user and make their eyes completely red, giving them some kind of hangover, unable to focus, or use other Jutsu's properly. Of course, it wore off after two hours.

Ketsu could not believe it, the man still managed to escape even after all the sacrifices and pain Jiraiya had to go through. Jiraiya had the tightest grip on the cloak, and exploding tags on his hands which were right near the man's face.

But the man pulled off his cloak at the last moment, then whipping out a kunai finishing Jiraiya off by slitting the throat. This was the end, the end that Ketsu would and could never forget. Now Ketsu was on his own, nobody to guide him, nobody to stay beside him, he was all alone.

What would he do when he had his revenge? The question lingered in Ketsu's mind, but he was on a one way track, he decided to face the problem when he got their. He was not worried about being able go kill the man, even if his sensei couldn't do it, he figured he somehow could.

He recalled that he had beaten Jiraiya in exactly six duels in his whole life. Out of the hundreds that they had had. But thinking was over, for his opponent was right in front of him…

---

Naruto opened his eyes slowly. He saw Kyozoku and Ryu standing over him looking down on him. Even before any first thoughts could run through Naruto's mind, Kyozoku squatted down and grabbed Naruto's Akatsuki collar lifting him up as she screamed, " WHERE THE HELL DID YOU TAKE HIM? TELL US! TELL US OR I SWEAR I WILL KILL YOU!"

The red-haired pirate let go of him so Naruto fell back down to the floor. He got up slowly, and brushed himself off. Then he remembered all that had just happened. He knew that they wouldn't take it well, he knew that they wouldn't let him go. It all came down to battle, but he wasn't sure if he could take them both in his poor condition. But he couldn't hold it in any longer, he had to tell the truth.

" I took him, I can't say where, but it's hopeless now. He's probably dead, and I'm the cause of his death…" Naruto bowed his head in shame. Just then, he felt the cold staff as it bashed his cheek and sent him flying back into a tree.

" Just tell us where he is! That saves us time, AND it saves your life." Ryu said very seriously.

" Why? What are you going to do if I tell you?" Naruto asked fearing the worst.

" What do you think we're going to do? We will go get him back!" Kyozoku shouted.

" NO! You can't, he's probably dead right now, there is a very, very, VERY, tiny chance that he's still alive. Also, if he is alive, then you won't be able to get him back, you fought me and Ketsu, and you THREE couldn't beat us. Now imagine, it's just YOU two, and there's nine Akatsuki members, each of them stronger than me. And, since I am part of the clan, it will be my obligation to stop you as well. I care for you guys, and I already made a mistake, I can't let you guys share the same fate as Garou. It's already too late for him." Naruto said almost with tears in his eyes.

" That doesn't matter, we have to get him back, you don't understand, he is our team member…so tell us where he is and step aside." Ryu said holding out his staff pointing directly at Naruto.

Instead, Naruto stepped more in the way, glaring at them. " I'm sorry, but I won't let you pass from here on. You'll have to go through me, I can't let you guys die."

" Then we will have to beat the information out of you!" Ryu shouted as he jumped forward attempting to strike Naruto many times stabbing at him ten times per second.

Naruto was in bad condition, but he was still fast, he was able to dodge every one as well as gain distance in order to give a hard kick to Ryu's face.

It was Kyozoku's turn, she ran behind Naruto and put him in a headlock, Ryu stood up and continuously thwacked Naruto's face with his staff.

" Now tell us!" Kyozoku shouted letting Naruto go.

" No, I don't care…if you kill me. But I will never tell you where he is." Naruto said.

" Where who is?" Garou asked from behind a tree.

" What?" Naruto shouted in disbelief.

" Garou!" Ryu and Kyozoku both shouted at the same time running to him.

" I'm sorry Naruto, but I was able to escape. Please, I know you didn't want to do this in the first place, so can you act like you never saw me? I have my life to live you know?" Garou asked.

Naruto sighed, then smiled a bit, " Yeah….I can."

" Thanks, let's go guys, we've got some battles to interfere with." Garou said happily as the Tennoushihai took off into the forest.

Naruto decided to head back, and act like nothing had happened.

---

" Stop!" Ketsu shouted to the person in a black cloak running away in front of him. The man with brown hair stopped, then turned around to face Ketsu.

" You killed him! How could you?" Ketsu shouted in fury.

Sora smiled. " My name is Sora kid, and you must be referring to the frog Sannin Huh? Well if that's the case then you are right. What have you come here for? Revenge? What makes you think you can win if he didn't. I have to give him credit though, he was the second toughest person I've ever faced. He was very good. But not good enough."

" Who is the toughest that you've ever fought?" Ketsu asked.

" Ignorance." Sora said. But without explaining, he simply went on. " Look, what do you want?"

" As you said before revenge." Ketsu took off the cloak so that now he was visible.

" You're just a boy! How can you stand against me?" Sora asked. " If you fight, I will kill you, no problem. So run away little bug, so insignificant you are, grow up strong, then you can make a difference in this world. Don't come and try to end your life already." Sora said mocking Ketsu which only made him angrier.

" You don't know anything about me! RASENGAN!" Ketsu formed two Rasengans in his had as he threw them at his opponent.

Sora simply punched them back at Ketsu who was now running towards him with two more Rasengans, except this time, they were both small and red.

Ketsu dodged his own blue chakra spheres heading against him, and jumped in the air. But before jumping, he threw on of the Bomu Rasengans at Sora, then threw the other once high above him.

Sora looked back and saw another Ketsu throwing two of the red spheres. There were now four of them coming straight at him. He knew these were different from the first ones. But he didn't know what. He decided to find out by letting them hit him. It couldn't do too much damage, after all, Ketsu was just a boy.

BOOM, BOOM, BOOM……The fourth explosion did not come. Both Ketsu's regrouped and panting both looked at their opponent through the black smoke surrounding the air.

Sora was not wearing the black cloak anymore, it had burned off. Instead, he was wearing what looked to be like a tight suit that fit his muscular appearance perfectly. It was also all black. Sora clutched his side as a small stain of blood appeared. He then looked at the two Ketsu's.

He smiled as he said, " Impressive, but that was very dumb of me on my part. So don't get too excited. It appears I greatly underestimated you. I didn't know little kids were capable of this power. But that's the only scratch you'll get on me. You're already doing better than the frog Sannin before you. Keep it up, if you can."

As soon as he had finished his sentences, he rushed at Ketsu with amazing speed. Before the Ketsu's could react, he was already in between them, facing sideways at one of them with his mouth open. Out came the Bomu Rasengan that had not exploded. It hit Ketsu and blew him up with extreme force. The other Ketsu was knocked back by the explosion.

" Whoa, it looks as if I was very lucky on that one. Lucky that you picked the fake me. I'm surprised you hid it in your mouth…" Ketsu said facing Sora once more.

" Thank you. But what are you going to do now that you are the only one left?"

" We'll see." Ketsu then jumped in the air. Sora followed right after him. What Sora didn't see was that Ketsu was holding a clear string in his hand that connected to the grass on the ground. As soon as Sora had reached high enough into the air, Ketsu pulled the string, springing a trap that sent hundreds of blades and Kunai into the air straight at Sora.

_Poof_! A tree trunk appeared in Sora's stead.

" Kawarimi No Jutsu, the oldest trick in the book!" Ketsu shouted as he looked behind him. Sora was already there, giving a backhand strike to Ketsu's face sending him flying high into the air. Sora followed after him again, striking Ketsu along the way to make him go higher.

But Ketsu managed to block one of Sora's kicks, then he grabbed Sora's leg and swung him even higher than himself. When Ketsu landed, Sora was still in the air coming down, which then gave Ketsu the advantage. " Kuchiyose No Jutsu!"

A large frog twice the size of Sora appeared and swallowed the brown-haired man right up. But it wasn't enough to stop him. Just a few seconds later, the frog turned around to face Ketsu, and it exploded, it's insides flying everywhere. There was Sora, full of frog blood, smiling.

" Well, I can see that didn't work, but maybe this will!" Ketsu shouted as he formed many hand seals rushing at Sora. " Hyouhen No Jutsu!"

Suddenly, hundreds of long thin ice shards gathered all around Sora, pointing directly at him. They all looked like very thin spears made out of glimmering ice. " KAI!" Ketsu shouted. Every single ice spear flew at extreme speeds at its opponent.

Sora simply spun around many times creating a barrier of wind. The ice spears just shattered to dust particles when clashing with the barrier.

Ketsu then created an ice spear in his hand and threw it straight at Sora's head. But Sora, still with a smile said, " Gouka Ibuki!" Then he opened his mouth and smoke came out with his breath. The ice melted as soon as it came in contact with the smoke. The only thing that hit Sora, was cold water. " mmm…refreshing." Sora said, wiping the water off of his face.

" Why?" Ketsu screamed, " Why won't you die?"

" Because you can't kill me! Can't you understand that? You didn't use your head, you just came here seeking revenge, you should have trained, years and years, before even THINKING about confronting me. But you were to busy thinking that you could do it right now, you're not even close to my strength. So, the question is, what will you do now? Because now, I need to get back, I'm tired of playing around."

" I will still defeat you." Ketsu said gritting his teeth.

Sora disappeared and reappeared behind Ketsu, grabbing a hold of his left arm, bringing it behind his back, and upwards. Ketsu screamed in pain as his arm went out of its socket and over his head behind him. Sora then kicked Ketsu's legs, knocking him on the ground.

" Stop!" Said a very familiar voice. Ketsu turned his head and threw his squinted eyes he saw one person that he never had expected, the Hokage of Konoha.

" Tsunade!" Ketsu shouted. He got up and watched as the blond-haired woman passed Ketsu and went over to Sora.

" What's the status on the village?" Sora asked Tsunade.

" Ketsu set traps, so that nobody would follow him, so Konoha is damaged at this point in time, very vulnerable to attacks. What is the status on Jiraiya and the Kyubi boy?"

" Mission accomplished, and as of the demon, I was on my way, until I was interrupted." Sora informed her.

" What are you doing!" Ketsu shouted. " Tsunade!"

" SHUTUP! The woman you know as Tsunade, has been dead since she was first elected to be Hokage." Tsunade said.

" What?" Ketsu asked extremely confused.

Then, the woman who appeared to be the Hokage, suddenly just transformed, in less than a second, it was a man, skinny but muscular. He had long black hair, and he wore the exact same thing Sora wore, the tight suit that fit him well. But this man, wore gloves.

Ketsu was speechless, and he knew that all hope for him to win, to avenge his sensei, was lost.

" Do you need any help Sora-san?" The new person asked.

" No thanks, I'll be fine, just go back, I'll finish things here." Sora said patting the man on the back, dismissing him. The man left, leaving Ketsu with his broken arm, and Sora, to face each other in silence.

" Now, It's time to finish this." Sora said. He rushed towards Ketsu again, this time giving the fifteen year old boy two high kicks to the chin, sending Ketsu directly into the air. He followed straight after, punching and kicking Ketsu even more. Ketsu was bleed from his ears and face when he fell to the ground.

Ketsu looked at the figure in the distance through his tears of blood and water. Sora placed his foot lightly on Ketsu's head, about to crush it, until Naruto arrived.

" Ketsu!" Naruto shouted. " What are you doing to him?"

Sora only smiled. " Well look who it is! If it isn't the Kyubi boy."

" It's Naruto! And let Ketsu go! I'll kill you!" Naruto shouted, already ready to engage in battle.

" Hey, calm down, I didn't know brotherly love was this strong." Sora said.

" What?" Naruto and Ketsu both said at the same time.

"So I see you didn't know until now, well, I guess you didn't know that you both are two of the last three Uzumaki family members there are on this earth. The rest are dead."

" …That…can't be true…." Naruto said with his head down. " Don't give me more problems!" He said with tears in his eyes as well. He was so angry, that he was screaming.

" Ha, ha, ha, ha! I love moments like this. Did you think you had any business here? I'm about to kill my opponent, so if you'll excuse me," Sora said.

" I SAID DON'T TOUCH HIM!" Naruto screamed. Suddenly, a red aura of Chakra started to form around Naruto. His teeth grew into fangs, and his nails into claws.

" Well, it looks that my boss might be happier if I bring you back with me now won't he. But I can assure you that-" Sora was cut off as naruto slammed his fist into Sora's face, sending him skidding across the ground fifty feet away.

Sora was still for a moment, then got up. His jaw was hanging, for Naruto had already broken it.

Sora's eyes looked very angry. Even though his jaw was hanging, his facial expression was terrifying. But Naruto just ran after him, punching him again, but this time in the stomach. Instead of sending him back through the air, Naruto head made a whole through Sora's body. Naruto took out his bloody arm, and with his right clean hand, slapped Sora and his opponent went flying once again.

Sora stood laying on his back, looking up at Naruto, who was already at his side. Sora lifted up his left rocky arm, and shot a light ball straight at Naruto's face. But the light disintegrated even before touching Naruto. Naruto then finished Sora off by crushing his skull with his fist.

Naruto stood up, looking around angrily, still in demon form. Just then, Itachi, Kisame, Sasori, and Deidara all came and held Naruto so that he couldn't move. They were then all gone in a flash.

Before Ketsu went unconscious, he saw Kyozoku and Ryu looking down on him, they too, were very beat up, but not like himself. They took his beaten body away, to be taken care of, under their supervision.

A/N: Thanx guyz, um, the next one, I can't tell you when it's going to come out. But I've been working on this one for a few days now, so that's why I was able to get it to you within a week's time. But please, review this story, and tell me how it's going to go. Have a great week, until next time!


	11. Separation

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Chapter Eleven: Separation

Naruto had finally calmed down when they arrived to the Akatsuki base.

Each Akatsuki member surrounded him as stood looking around. They all had a look of worry across their faces.

" The time has come. The time we were all dreading, has finally arrived." Stated Akuma, also known as the Demon Killer. He was definitely one of the top four strongest people in the Akatsuki. He had black shaggy hair, and a slight hint of an unshaven beard. Many years ago, he and Itachi were the best team around. They knew each other completely, able to rely on their partner. Together, they were undefeatable.

" He's right." Some of the Akatsuki members said.

" What are you all talking about?" Naruto asked feeling extremely confused.

Everybody sighed, looking at each other.

" It's time to tell him the truth." Akuma said, placing his hand on Naruto's shoulder. " It's time he found out about everything. Naruto, please try to be calm while we explain."

" Explain what?" Naruto asked.

" Many years ago, while we were looking for demons, like we are now, we found you." Sasori said, starting the whole conversation.

" We all made a deal, a promise to each other. And that deal was that we would each train you, because you would be of use to us. Think of the possibilities, of having a demon under our control. That is why you have so much potential." Kisame said.

" The simple truth is, that we used you, for a weapon. You would help us carry out the missions when you became strong enough. The other part of the deal was, that we would extract the demon from you, once it had been unleashed like it was today, ultimately leading to your death. You grew on all of us, but deep down in our hearts, we knew, that the older you became, the closer you were to unleashing the Kyubi." Akuma said.

" What?" Naruto asked with tears in his eyes. He could not believe what he was hearing.

" When we first got you and trained you, you were already showing signs of anger. We knew we had to control that. I used one of my best perfected Jutsu's. I sealed the demon even deeper in you and the seal acted as a super strong cage against it. But over the years, the seal began to wear off, only holding on because you had not become strong enough. But now, you are, and just today, the seal broke when you unleashed your anger. We can't control such a thing, that is why we must extract the demon now." Akuma explained.

Naruto bowed his head in sadness. " So, just like that? It's over? All this time, I thought I was living for something, and that was my family. That was you guys, but all you wanted, was power, even now, that's all you want. I can't believe that after all we've been through, you're willing to dispose of me, just like that. Did you ever take into account how I would feel? I guess not. But you know what? Go ahead. I've served you all my life, living for you, now, I can serve you one last time…"

" We are very sorry Naruto, but let's go." Akuma grabbed Naruto's wrist, about to lead him to his doom. But Kisame grabbed Naruto's other arm, not allowing him to go.

" Wait. Think about what we are doing! Naruto's right, how can we just do this to him? I can't just let this go by me without doing anything about it. I can't let him go just like that. He can still be of use to us. And if you can't see that, then maybe I will have to make you all see it." Kisame said.

" Kisame! You traitor!" Sasori shouted in anger. " We all made the deal, and we must keep it! If we let him stay with the demon, he could turn on us any second, going berserk and out of control. We can't have that kind of power against us. He is a great threat to us, and that is why we all agreed to this."

" Well I'm changing my mind! I'm willing to fight for his survival!" Kisame shouted.

" …very well." Sasori said. " Anyone else?"

Two Akatsuki members joined Kisame, agreeing that Naruto had the right to live.

" What?" Akuma shouted. " Itachi, let's get them!" He said. He walked toward Kisame and the other two members but Itachi stood in his way.

" I don't know Akuma, maybe Naruto should live…" Itachi said, looking straight into Akuma's eyes.

" How can you betray us, especially after all we've been through?" Akuma asked.

Kisame then grabbed Naruto as everybody on his side escaped including Itachi.

" Let them go Sasori!" Akuma said. "They will be back, we have her."

---

Ketsu slowly opened his droopy eyes to see Kyozoku and Ryu looking down on him. He tried to sit up but stopped because of the pain. " Where am I?" Ketsu asked.

" That doesn't matter. You need your rest right now." Kyozoku said.

" What happened?" Ketsu asked.

" Well, we thought Garou had come back, but he hadn't. When all the three of us were alone, he suddenly changed into a totally different person. A man with long black hair. He suddenly attacked us. He was very strong from the little that we fought him. We had a tough time even though we out numbered him two to one. We managed to escape. After wandering around for a long time, we stumbled upon you. You were beat beyond imagination. We took you to where you are now. You heal extremely fast, but you are still not completely healed. You will be better after a few days. That arm will take at least a month to heal. So be careful with it. Kyozoku will look after you for now, I am leaving." Ryu said.

" Where are you going?" Ketsu asked.

Ryu and Kyozoku both sighed. " We will not give up on Garou, Kyozoku will look after you like I said, I'm going to gather some information." Ryu explained.

" Be careful, remember we are a team, I may have lost one, I can't lose you too. We are a family after all." Kyozoku said looking at Ryu.

" Don't worry about me, I will be back, I promise. I'll be back by nightfall." Ryu said leaving the little shack they were in.

" Go to sleep, you need your rest." Kyozoku said to Ketsu a few moments later.

As Ketsu closed his eyes and rested them, a few minutes later, he could hear Kyozoku weeping from the sadness she was in. He then fell asleep.

---

" Shizune-san!" Sakura shouted as she approached the shinobi crying and sitting on the ground. " What's wrong?" Sakura asked.

" Tsunade is gone!" She shouted bursting into more tears. " It is so hard to believe. And in the midst of all this. She would never leave Konoha in this state. I think she went to go chase off after Ketsu, but it has been more than a week now. She never takes this long. I don't understand, and right after she said that rescuing Ketsu would have to wait."

" We can figure this out together. After all, our village cannot function without a Hokage. What are the elders doing?" Sakura asked.

" Since she left all of the sudden without notice, they are doing what they think is best for the village. They are selecting a new Hokage already, and if Tsunade comes back, then she will resume her position if she has a good excuse for leaving without telling anyone." Shizune said crying once more.

" So who have they decided on?" Sakura asked.

" Nobody knows. But there are rumors that Kakashi-san may become the new Hokage."

" Let's not focus on that right now." Sakura said.

" What were you doing just now?" Shizune asked.

" I just came back from my B class mission. I'm pretty beat. But I did extremely well, I have been training with Kakashi, Asuma, and Anko for the past five months. I don't know what I would do without them."

" Oh by the way, I never got to congratulate you one your promotion to Chunnin. I know it's already been a full month since the Chunnin exam, but I never really got around to it. I apologize for that, but once again, congratulations." Shizune said.

" Thank you, and don't worry about that." Sakura said. " We should go arrange a search team soon, let us go talk to the elders."

" Good idea." Shizune said wiping her tears and standing up. " When can you start? I don't mean to be a rush, but can you recover within a few days from your recent mission? I want to start the mission soon if they allow us."

" A few days? If they give us permission, just let me take a shower and I'll be ready. I also want to get to the bottom of this." Sakura said smiling.

" Great! Let's go talk to the elders then." Shizune said.

Once they had met up with the elders, they presented their concern.

" We are all aware that the Hokage has been gone for longer than anticipated. We are working on a new Hokage." The elders said.

" We also want to help! Please!" Shizune shouted as she fell to her knees. " Allow us to search for Tsunade-sama! I have to find out what's wrong. We will not let you down, just please, let us go. We can form our own team."

" We know that you are worried Shizune-san, but we cannot just let a team go when Konoha is in dire need of help. Who knows what can happen? You all might disappear as well." One of the elders stated. " I don't think it would be very wise if we let you go."

" I understand completely how you feel, but please, I've always watched out for Tsunade-sama, way before she became Hokage. She is my best friend, I love her as if she were my own sister. And she's gone. I will do anything to get her back. Now I'm asking you, please let me go on this mission. Please…" Shizune said begging them with tears in her eyes.

The elders all sighed, then agreed. " Very well, you may search for the Hokage. We cannot allow to many people to go, so we will allow you to a team of four people. Also, please come back as soon as you can. We are counting on you, no, Konoha is counting on you."

" Hai!" Sakura and Shizune both shouted as the left the building.

" Sakura, go home and get ready, I will gather the other two shinobi. Meet at the West gate in three hours." Shizune said.

" Got it." Sakura said as she quickly ran off to her home.

Shizune knew just which two people to get: Hyugga Hiashi, and an ANBU member, as well as an old friend.

She decided to recruit the ANBU member first. She went to his door and knocked.

" Shizune! What can I do for you?" The man who opened the door asked removing his ANBU mask. The man had light brown spiky hair that slanted a bit to the side. He was muscular for his skinny size. He wasn't exactly that tall either. He had known Shizune for years, before he had become an ANBU member.

" Kimotsu! Long time no see. I know this may be such short notice, but I need a big favor." Shizune said.

" Anything, what is it?" Kimotsu asked.

" Go on a mission with me."

" Alright, but what is our objective?"

" To either find and bring back Tsunade-sama, or at least find out information. I'm allowed a team of four." Shizune explained.

" Alright, when do we leave?" Kimotsu asked.

" In three hours."

" Holy! Alright, let me get ready. Oh by the way, who else is coming?"

" A Chunnin named Haruno Sakura and hopefully Hyugga Hiashi." Shizune answered.

" Alright, I'll be ready within three hours."

" Meet up at the West gate in three hours from now."

" Gotcha!" Kimotsu said closing his door rushing to get ready.

Now Shizune had to acquire Hyugga Hiashi, with his Byakugan, they could sense any trouble coming.

When she arrived at Hiashi's house, he was not there. Instead, she found Hyugga Neji, Hiashi's nephew.

" He is currently out on a mission. However, if it is the Byakugan that you need, then I may be of assistance. I am willing to go on the mission. I want to test out my training with Hiashi anyway." Neji said.

It was all set. Three hours later, there they were, the team ready to leave Konoha in search of Tsunade. Shizune, Sakura, Neji, and Kimotsu.

They all left Konoha one hour after noon.

---

Ketsu was now able to sit up. It had been exactly two days since Ryu had left. He did arrive by nightfall, with no information, nothing. But he left the day after that, and the day after that.

" Ryu, don't you think I should go?" Kyozoku asked him right before he had left. Ketsu was asleep at this time.

" No, trust me, I'm very close, as always, I'll be back by nightfall, watch over Ketsu." Ryu said.

Ketsu had woken up two hours later, feeling refreshed. He sat up easily and ate his soup/breakfast with right arm.

" How are you feeling?" Kyozoku asked.

" Much better. I really must thank you. And I'm sorry for being a burden on you guys. I know that you didn't have to take me in, but you did anyway. I'm very grateful." Ketsu said. " Once I am able to move, I promise that I will help you look for Garou."

" Thank you. And you are welcome." Kyozoku said smiling. It was the first time Ketsu had seen Kyozoku smile since when he first met her along with Naruto. That was an amazing battle. He constantly thought of that fight.

But he thought more of the fight with Sora. He felt so weak, he couldn't even avenge his sensei. Once he got better, after helping Kyozoku and Ryu, he was going to train, for as long as it took. He had already made up his mind. Sora was gone, but there was that man that had appeared during their battle. The shape shifter, he would find that man, and kill him.

Ketsu hated just lying here, he wanted to get up, get going. But he knew he had to take it slow.

---

Sakura sighed as she stared blankly into the fire that the four shinobi were gathered around. It was already dark, it had been two days, and they had made no progress. No information on Tsunade. But they would not give up.

" I know this is tough guys, but we can't give up. We haven't made much progress, but we've come a pretty long way. We just can't go home empty handed. Don't lose hope, we will find something." Shizune reassured the group.

" How many towns and villages have we visited altogether?" Kimotsu asked.

" Nineteen." Sakura answered him not taking here eyes off of the flame in front of her.

Suddenly, Neji stood up.

" What is it?" Shizune asked.

" We've got company." Neji said.

" Yes!" Kimotsu shouted in joy. " Finally, some fun. How many?"

" Eight. It appears that they followed us from the town we visited a few hours ago." Neji said. " They will be here any second, they are closing in fast, get ready."

Sakura, Shizune, and Kimotsu stood up, all of them alert.

Just like Neji had said, the eight shinobi had arrived, surrounding them.

One of them, who appeared to be leading the group, spoke up. " Earlier in the town, you were asking people things. We came here to make sure that it stops. You shouldn't stick your nose up in things that are none of your business." The man said.

" What? What are you talking about? Of course it's our business. The Hokage is gone." Sakura shouted.

" Well then, if that is how you feel, then we are going to change your mind." The leader said with a smile. " What are you smiling at?" He asked Kimotsu, who was grinning like a boy on Christmas day.

" I'm sorry, I can't help it. I'm excited, whenever I'm about to fight a battle, my blood rushes, I get pumped up, and very excited. I can't stop smiling. Since I'm so excited, I'm very alert, and that really helps during the fight." Kimotsu explained smiling still.

" Then we're going to have to wipe that smile off of your ugly face!" Another man said. He charged Kimotsu holding two Kunai in his hand.

It all happened so fast. Sakura was completely amazed. One moment, she saw a man charging Kimotsu, the next, the man was on the ground on his stomach, with both Kunai in Kimotsu's hands pointing straight at the man's neck.

" What speed!" Sakura said.

" Anybody else?" Kimotsu asked.

" Charge everybody!" The leader shouted. He rushed at Shizune, but Sakura appeared behind him, crouching down and sweeping him off his feet and into the air with her right leg. The with her left leg still crouched to the ground, she pummeled him higher into the air. Then Neji came up above him and slammed him down to the ground leaving him unconscious with one hit.

Shizune ducked and dodged the bat swinging straight at her head. She elbowed her opponent in the gut and then with her other hand punched his nose sending him back a few feet stumbling. She rushed after him jumping up and kicking the bat from his hands with one leg, and kicking his face with her other leg. The man flew to the ground quickly. But he also managed to get up. Shizune was ready. She grabbed his left ear tightly and pulled to the far right. The man screamed as he moved to wherever Shizune made him. After toying with the man enough, she punched him unconscious.

Sakura's new opponent was a very large and muscular man with no weapons but his humongous fists. She attempted to land a punch on his face, but he caught her fist in his hand. He started squeezing Sakura's fist very tight. Sakura gritted her teeth in pain. But with her other free hand, she whipped out a kunai and stabbed the man's hand forcing him to let go and scream in pain. The man fell to his knees giving an open shot straight to his face. Sakura took the opportunity and punched him over and over and over again until he knocked out.

Neji's opponent was very tall with two long swords in each hand. Neji dodged the first three swift strikes, but the fourth managed to leave a small cut on Neji's cheek. Neji then jumped forward, flying in between the swords, and giving two kicks to the man's kneecaps, breaking them. The man fell down throwing one of his swords to Neji. Neji caught the sword and with the handle hit the man on the side of the head knocking him out.

Once Shizune, Sakura, and Neji each beat their opponents, the turned around and saw that Kimotsu had the rest of the four men pinned down. Kimotsu had the first man that attacked him still on his stomach, but this time, Kimotsu was only pointing one kunai at the back of his neck. Another man he had in a headlock with the second kunai right at his throat.

One man was completely knocked out and the last one was on the ground with Kimotsu's foot on his head.

" Looks like this battle's finished." Shizune said. They all gathered the conscious men, and put them together, interrogating them.

" Why did you all come attack us?" Shizune asked holding a kunai to one of the men's throats.

" Ahhh! Please don't kill me! Please, I don't want to die, I just-"

" THEN TALK!" Shizune shouted.

" Alright, alright! We attacked you because we can't let you find out anymore information." The man said.

" Why?" Sakura asked screaming in the man's face.

" I don't know!" The man said crying. " I swear I don't know! Just please don't kill me!"

Shizune then moved on to the next man. " What do you know?"

" We did see a person that you described heading somewhere!" The man said. " The reason we can't let you find out information was just an excuse. The real reason that we attacked you is because we wanted your money! Please forgive us!"

" Where did you see that person heading?" Neji asked.

" She headed Northwest. But that's all we know, I swear." The man said.

" You better not be lying or else!" Shizune shouted.

" These men are too terrified to lie." Kimotsu said.

At that moment, the team left Northeast until sunrise. There they came upon a small shack in the middle of the forest.

" Let's check it out." Sakura said. They were about to enter the shack until a man barged out. The man had light brown hair, a large jackets, and shorts. He pointed a staff at all of them.

" Don't come any closer!" The man shouted angrily.

" Ryu, who is it?" A girl asked coming out of the shack. When she opened the door, Shizune could see Ketsu inside.

" Ketsu! What are you doing here?" Shizune asked.

" Hi…" Ketsu said waving slightly.

" You know these people Ketsu?" Ryu asked.

" Yeah, it's alright." Ketsu said. Ryu then put his staff away.

" Where is Tsunade-sama?" Shizune asked after they had all settled inside the small shack that was now crowded.

" I don't want to tell you this but…she is dead, and has been, for a pretty long time. The person who you thought was Tsunade was actually a shape shifter. I don't know his name, but I plan to find him one day." Ketsu said. " I'm sorry."

Shizune looked sad, then started to cry a bit. " I'm just glad, that now we know the truth. Looks like we will need a new Hokage after all…thank you, for telling us. Now we must get back to the village. Let's go Ketsu."

" Um…actually, I'm going to stay with them." Ketsu said.

" Why is that?" Sakura asked.

" I'm just not ready to return to Konoha yet. Plus, I've got some unfinished business here, and a promise to keep." Ketsu said.

" Very well. But you are welcome in Konoha whenever." Shizune said. With that, the four people were off, leaving Ryu, Kyozoku, and Ketsu in peace.

---

" Interesting…" The elders said. " It is a shame, because the real Tsunade would have made a good Hokage. Thank you for finding out, all of you." They said to Kimotsu, Neji, Sakura, and Shizune.

" So how is it going with the new Hokage?" Kimotsu asked.

" As a matter of fact, we have already selected him." One of the elders said.

" So who is it?" Sakura asked.

" His name is Rikou Haburi."

A/N: I know that this chapter wasn't that great. But the next on will be awesome. Please review, and I had to wipe my whole hard drive just to get my comp clean, so that sux, but It is all good now. But please review. Thank you.


	12. Ultimate Power

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Chapter Twelve: Ultimate Power

" Rikou Haburi?" Kimotsu asked knocking a wooden door to a small house. There was no answer. Kimotsu tried again. " Rikou Haburi, are you here?"

Still no answer, Kimotsu did not have much patience, he was already getting angry. " Rikou Haburi! Answer the door!" But still there was no answer. " Darn, you stupid old man, what does it take for you to get off you lazy-" He was interrupted as a hand flew through the thick wooden door and grabbed Kimotsu's neck.

The arm retracted bringing Kimotsu's face into the door. _Poof_! Kimotsu disappeared, reappearing behind his attacker, Rikou Haburi. He held a kunai to the old man's back. He smiled, then said, " Nice try, but-"

He was interrupted a second time, _Poof_! The old man disappeared just like Kimotsu himself had done before and appeared holding a kunai an inch away from Kimotsu's throat. It was Haburi's turn to smile, " You sure know how to make an entrance."

" So your reputation proceeds you." Kimotsu said.

" Oh," Haburi sighed, " I am nobody but an old man, an old hermit living alone. But that's the way I experience happiness, with silence."

" The reason I come here today, is because we have a proposition for you, more like a partial obligation. Konoha is in need, as you can see, and Tsunade-sama is gone now. The elders have selected, and you, you sir have been chosen to lead our village to peace and prosperity." Kimotsu said.

Haburi grabbed his gut and bust out laughing. " Are you serious?"

Kimotsu's smile faded and he said, " yes."

Haburi stopped laughing tensing the mood. " Konoha must have run out of people. Why me? There are so many other shinobi who could do this job ten thousand times better than I can."

" You know what? That could be, but I didn't decide, the elder's have chosen you, a retired shinobi." Kimotsu said.

" What do you think, as an ANBU member and a citizen of Konoha? What do you think of me becoming Hokage?" Haburi asked him.

" I believe that in your prime, you were legendary, after all, how could you have earned your title as " The TaiGen" without an immense amount of skill? I believe now, many years later, you have the experience, as well as the wisdom to lead Konoha to a bright future, that is what I believe." Kimotsu said straight out.

" Ahh, those were the days, many years ago like you just said." Haburi said recalling the past. " I was a master at Taijutsu and Genjutsu earning the name TaiGen. So many missions, so many criminals. So many battles. Now, I am very old, who knows what good I can do for this village?"

" The elders have much wisdom as well. More than you know. They were once shinobi as well, but not a prodigy like you were. A person of your level and beyond only comes once a million people. If they chose you, then it was for good reason too. They have faith in you, they are positive that you can do it. But ultimately, it is your choice." Kimotsu said, heading for the door. " Think about it, but remember, while you sit here and think, Konoha is out there, waiting for your response. Don't let Konoha suffer too much longer. I know that it must hurt you just like it does to all of us, to see Konoha in practically ruins like this. Times are changing, and we need a strong leader to lead us, you have been chosen, so what will you choose?" With that said, Kimotsu left the building back to the elders.

Haburi sat down on his usual leather chair, he sat staring at the fireplace. The fire was almost out, a tiny flame flickering, like Konoha, almost out.

---

" Naruto, do not speak of this place to anyone!" Itachi demanded, pointing a finger straight at Naruto. " Do not leave this cave either, this will be our temporary base. It is pretty big, so don't wander off. If you leave, somebody could see you and follow you back. Understand?"

Naruto nodded.

" Mihniopaksu, Kisame, Zetsu, and I will be leaving, we will be back in a few hours. You are not allowed to come. This is very important that you listen to us Naruto, we must provide your safety, now that the other Akatsuki team wants you dead. We will be back, this is a mission even beyond your level. Please just stay where you are." Itachi said.

With that, the four Akatsuki members left the cave, leaving Naruto alone.

What was he to do? What were they going to do? They were heading back to the old Akatsuki base no doubt, but why? If not, then what else could be the mission above Naruto's level. He was a very skilled shinobi, this must have been a strong mission. But what?

Naruto didn't wait too long, it was about four hours when Mihniopaksu and Zetsu arrived. They were panting and looked pretty beat up. Worthy opponents for Akatsuki members, who could it be? Other Akatsuki members? Zetsu and Mihniopaksu would not say a word, until finally an hour later, Itachi arrived followed by Kisame. They both looked more beat than Zetsu and Mihniopaksu. Kisame, dragged a large black coffin, like a tomb or a vault without it's seal. The coffin had chains all over it binding it up, then a large lock with a seal on it. Kisame pulled the chains dragging the heavy coffin along.

---

" Rikou Haburi!" Kimotsu banged on the old man's door three days later since his last visit. He expected that Haburi would actually open the door this time, but he didn't. Even after Kimotsu had insulted him. Kimotsu finally got fed up and busted through the door, shattering it to pieces. He rushed in, but Haburi was nowhere to be found inside. He stepped outside, and whirled around, he looked, and above him, stood Rikou Haburi, smiling. " What have you decided?" Kimotsu asked him jumping up there.

" If the elders have chosen me, then I will go. Take me to them. I have made to my decision. You now have your new Hokage." Haburi said.

" Very well." Kimotsu said smiling as he led Haburi to the elders.

---

Once again, lonely, but this time, a large tomb with chains for company, Naruto sat slouching against the black coffin, which was now laying vertically and no just lying down. The four Akatsuki members had gone out once again, with the same instructions but one thing added, guard the coffin with his life. No matter what. What was more important that Naruto's life, what was in the box?

Naruto did not let his curiosity get the best of him. He just looked at the cave wall, feeling weary. If he was an Akatsuki member, why couldn't he do any Akatsuki missions? He wore the cloak just like everybody else did, didn't that mean anything? He had not however, received his official ring. Just like his past, it was never spoken about. Naruto assumed now that since they made plans to kill him some time, they wouldn't have to give him a ring. Really, what was so important about this box? Naruto could not get his mind off of it. Even when he tried to think of other things, it would still linger in the back of his mind.

Finally, after what seemed like hours of waiting, an Akatsuki member arrived, but not anybody Naruto was expecting. Naruto jumped up shouting, " Sasori!"

Sasori spotted Naruto, and what he came for behind the blond boy. " Step away from that Naruto, and nobody has to get hurt."

" Did you come with everybody?" Naruto asked.

" I don't need to. I'm good enough to take anybody on." Sasori said, deviously smiling behind the black scarf covering his mouth.

" I cannot let you have this then. I will protect it with my life as I was told. You won't be able to take it from me. You were one of the last people I trained with, but I still have improved Sasori-dono." Naruto said preparing to fight.

" Tsk, tsk, tsk. Naruto, what could be more important than your life?" Sasori asked. " I bet you are wondering right now what is inside that tomb. The Akatsuki have split into two, but we are both still the same. You think Itachi and them actually care about you? No, they only see you as a weapon that can still be useful. I'll tell you what's in that box, to prove that you're just a tool to them as well. What's inside that box, right now, is an even better weapon. A failure, so to speak, the extracting of the demon went somehow wrong. The demon was extracted, but the person still lived, and kept the demon's powers. Afraid of what it could do, we sealed it up in that. Practically impossible to destroy, even after the seal. Inside is a substance like jelly and ice at the same time, harder than ice itself, but the person inside it, is allowed to grow, still getting the nutrients that person needs, becoming stronger. When that person is big enough, we know that it will break the seal, but now that times have changed, we are going to use this incredible power, to conquer all the lands."

" What? You're lying! You're just saying that there is another person in here to make me confused about whether they care about me or not! I know how they feel, and they are not using me like you all were." Naruto said through his gritted teeth.

Sasori laughed, " Naruto, so naïve, so young, you may be a prodigy, but you are dust compared to the capabilities of the person inside. With the right training, that person could destroy countries with single attacks. Why would anybody need you? Not even strong enough to beat one of us."

" Well if I'm that weak, then why were you afraid of my powers?" Naruto asked.

" Not of you, of the demon inside of you, we want its power as well. Of all the demons, the Kyubi is the second strongest. But the demon vessel that lives, was the strongest. And the powers of the demon linger in that person. If you don't believe me, let's open it, and find out. I know how to open it Naruto, it will be no problem. If you'll just-" Sasori stepped a bit closer to Naruto.

" NO! Don't come any closer, if you want it, you'll have to get through me first, and that won't be easy. I won't let you pass!" Naruto quickly took off his jacket and hurled it out of the way. On his back was his very own puppet that Sasori had made for him long ago. One of Sasori's best accomplishments, as Sasori had said himself.

" Sad, that I will have to destroy an apprentice, and one of my best masterpieces, all in one day. That won't stop you Naruto. You won't be able to fight fire with fire, this is my area of expertise. I created this style of fighting, how do you expect to beat me?" Sasori asked, getting ready to fight as well.

" With my spare time, I have been working on it, ever since you taught me. I have been making improvements, adjusting a few things here and there. Now it's twice as good. Not to mention the extra time I put into training with it. We'll see how well you do against me Sasori, I won't let you pass as I said before. Hatred fuels my passion for your blood. Just like you always wanted me to feel, I'm feeling now. You have raised a true killing machine, and now, I'm about to show you what I'm made of!" Naruto shouted.

" Naruto, don't be foolish. Thinking you have a chance is your first mistake right there. You've seen my capabilities, have you not? Don't play with me Naruto, I just want the tomb and I'll spare you." Sasori said.

" Spare me? You won't be talking like this after you're on your knees begging for forgiveness. No talk, let's go." Naruto insisted as he opened his hands quickly attaching chakra strings to different parts of his puppet.

Sasori smiled. "It's been a while, let's see how much you've improved, that is, if you've improved at all."

Naruto ran to his left leaving his puppet in place patiently waiting as Sasori closed in on Naruto's puppet.

Sasori swung his tail down vertically with immense force, Naruto's puppet dashed to the side, fleeing back a few feet. The puppet extended its right arm and FOOSH! The hand of the puppet flew toward Sasori connected to a thick metal wire connecting all the way back to the arm. While it was still in the air traveling toward its target, the hand turned inside out, turning into a three bladed claw/anchor.

Sasori managed to dodge it with his body, but the claw trapped his tail against the ground. That didn't matter, Sasori whirled around and gave a hard blow to his tail, crumbling it to pieces.

Naruto was surprised, " You used to care about Hiruko, what happened?"

" Hiruko, the puppet form you see now, has been replaced, by many other " Human Puppets" I have acquired. I no longer have much of a use for it except a vessel I can stay in." Sasori said as he shot out one of his arms that was large and had many cylindrical objects surrounding it.

Once in the air between Naruto and his puppet, every single cylindrical object shot out, turning out to be bombs as well as poisoned needles. Naruto dodged them quickly with ease, his puppet got hit many times, not affecting it any. But now Sasori was without a tail, and an arm. Naruto's puppet shot out his left arm which was identical to the right, connecting the hand and the arm with a metal wire. The hand turned into a claw just like the other hand had done, except this time, the claw traveled around and around Sasori, careful not to touch him.

After circling Sasori about five times from top to bottom, the wire tightened so fast that the so called Hiruko puppet Naruto was fighting was completely crushed and smashed to bits. The real Sasori, managed to escape avoiding the same fate as his puppet.

Sasori didn't look the age he was at all, he looked super young still, but Naruto knew Sasori already, and he knew that he was deadly.

" What will you use now? You've trained me with all of your puppets, so I know their weaknesses." Naruto asked. Naruto's puppet's arms retracted turning back into hands again.

" Correction Naruto, I have never used this on you." Sasori said pulling out a scroll activating it. _Poof_! A large puppet appeared in front of Sasori. " Remember? Do you remember when we defeated this fool?"

" How could I forget, I almost died that day. The iron sand was a killer." Naruto said recalling the time when Sasori and Naruto both fought the legendary Kazekage.

The Sandaime Kazekage, the puppet Sasori was now controlling, was legendary for his most powerful move that he himself invented. Also known as iron sand, he could magnetize the sand using his chakra, allowing it to form any shape he liked. It was also as hard as Iron.

It was with that move, that Naruto almost died the day the captured him. If it hadn't been for Sasori's training and Sasori himself who saved Naruto, Naruto would not be alive today.

" I never thought I would ever fight you under these circumstances. I have so much hatred in me right now. I can't tell you that I say this without feeling pain in my heart, but, I want you dead, Sasori." Naruto said angrily but keeping calm.

" Hatred is power Naruto, don't be afraid to use it. The whole Akatsuki was trying to get that point across your whole life, and you barely understand it now, on your birthday." Sasori said.

" Wow, I totally forgot about that. Before on my birthdays, you would give me a challenging mission, to test my strength. If everything was still normal now, what mission would everybody have given me?" Naruto asked.

" The hardest of all, but a fun one no doubt. All of us, against you. You were allowed to attempt to kill us, and we would go pretty hard to you. So that would have been fun. Now, I'm ready to kill you for the demon vessel inside that coffin." Sasori said. " How old are you today, fourteen I believe?"

" Yeah." Naruto said.

" Happy birthday Naruto." Sasori said smiling deviously.

" Alright, let's get this on, the Kazekage against my puppet." Naruto said finally stepping out of it.

The Kazekage rushed at Naruto's puppet, who had dark spiky hair. Naruto's puppet, was considerably tall, well taller than Naruto anyway. Naruto's Puppet's name was Ajina.

The tope of Ajina's head suddenly broke open, blossoming like a flower, out came a large blade, spinning at an incredible speed. Like a propeller at the top of its head. Ajina flew up into the air, barely dodged the Kazekage's attack who's arms were now blades.

The Kazekage whirled around, but not fast enough to dodge a hard kick to the face sending it flying to the ground.

" So you have made improvements." Sasori said. " I don't remember giving it a propeller. Impressive. What else do you have?"

" You'll just have to fight and see." Naruto said. Ajina flew toward the Kazekage swiftly but the Kazekage's arms extended out and opened up, containing many tags on it. This triggered more arms to come out of the slots that had opened up, the new arms opened up as well and created more arms. So now there were hundreds of arms flying straight towards Ajina who was in the air.

Ajina was caught in the wave of arms and was not seen by Naruto or Sasori until after the arms drove straight from the air to the ground with awesome speed with Ajina within them.

" Shoot!" Naruto said rushing towards the hundreds arms all clashing with the earth. He jumped up and met the Kazekage in the air. The Kazekage opened its mouth and shot many poisoned needles, but Naruto managed to dodge them, attaching two exploding tags to each of Kazekage's arms, and a third to the pile of arms on top of Ajina pinning his puppet down.

BOOM, BOOM, BOOM! Ajina quickly got up looking pretty beat, with a few cracks here and there but still functioning properly. The Kazekage however, had no arms, and was in the same condition as Ajina all over.

Sasori clapped, praising Naruto's performance. " Very impressive Naruto, you have improved. But, you've already made your mistake, and luckily, I won't kill you. But the battle will soon be over."

" What are you talking about?" Naruto asked. But he found out the answer once he saw Sasori's smile and innocent eyes looking straight at Naruto's neck. Naruto then quickly pulled out the needle from his neck.

He looked at it and already knew the outcome of this battle. " A paralyzing needle. When did you put it on me?"

"When you were busy fighting the Kazekage. I pinned your puppet for a split second, but that was all I needed. Then, I knew you would use yourself to get your own puppet out. So I sent my puppet to distract you. While you were busy with him, I quickly dashed behind you and lightly punctured your neck. You'll be temporarily paralyzed in about two minutes." Sasori explained.

" That may be so, but I won't go down empty handed. I'm going to take your puppet out, so that you can never use the Kazekage again!" Naruto shouted.

" Try it. SATETSU SHIGURE!" Sasori screamed as all the black substance that appeared from the Kazekage's mouth separated and turned into bullets, shooting straight at Ajina.

" Toru No Jutsu!" Naruto screamed hiding behind his puppet and placing his hand on Ajina.

Within a second, the collision had occurred. Naruto appeared from the smoke that was everywhere.

" So you survived." Sasori said a bit angrily. He was not happy about that. What made him more angry was that Naruto was smiling.

Once the smoke had cleared up, he could see why. " Toru No Jutsu sucks up whatever is thrown and is able to release it back ten times as fast. So say like many iron bullets, that's how I will destroy your Kazekage, and you." Naruto said. " Kai!"

Then, Ajina shot out every single iron bullet that was in him ten times faster than it was thrown at it just like Naruto had said. Also like Naruto had predicted, the Kazekage was destroyed, but Sasori was not.

Instead, Sasori had summoned five more puppets to act as a shield for the iron bullets. Six of Sasori's puppets were destroyed, and the needle was already taking effect to Naruto's body.

" I can't let you take it!" Naruto shouted, he fell to his knees.

Sasori smiled as he made his way over to Ajina who was now lifeless, for Naruto's whole body had now gone numb except his head. Naruto was no longer able to control Ajina.

" No! Don't do it Sasori! Don't you dare!" Naruto screamed.

Sasori did not stop, he reached Ajina and placed his hand on its head. Concentrating, he transferred an large amount of Chakra into Ajina, then said, " Hakai." With that, the chakra inside of Ajina caused the puppet to exploded into many, many pieces. Naruto's only puppet was gone, Naruto could not move, and Sasori could now get what Naruto was guarding.

Sasori then walked over to the large coffin. " To show you Naruto, that I am telling you the truth, that you are guarding something, risking your life for something that is another person stronger than you, more useful than you. I will now unseal it. FUUWOKIRU!" Sasori shouted after he placed his hand on the seal written on the lock.

After he took off his hand from the seal, the seal disappeared and the lock turned red hot and melted, the chains fell to the ground, leaving the coffin ready to open.

Sasori then opened the coffin and the top fell to the ground with a loud thud. What looked like a large Ice block that fit perfectly inside the coffin slipped out and landed on the ground as well.

" We made this substance." Sasori said." Harder than Ice on the outside, but inside, softer than jelly, giving her room to grow. We originally found you and her at the same place same time. But we didn't know she had a demon in her. Until we thought twice, and went to retrieve her. It was a good thing we did. Her name, Hyugga Hinata. She's been in this her whole life starting when she was three years old. I did this so you can see that I'm telling you the truth." Sasori said smiling. He enjoyed Naruto's terrified expression.

" That can't be. I'm just a tool to them too?" Naruto asked.

" Naruto, be realistic, of course they are going to want you to protect that, she's more valuable than you, like I keep telling you. You long for a world of peace and happiness. Welcome to reality Naruto, peace is only a false hope for those too weak to seek power. The sooner you understand that, the easier it will be for you to deal with what's here, and not in your head. Hinata is thirteen about to turn fourteen. You have potential, but she has a hundred times what you have." Sasori said.

Although Naruto was starting to believe the horror that Sasori was telling him, he could not stray from Hinata. She was so beautiful to him. She had a perfect forehead, no bangs, and her hair extended to the back of her knees. " Hyugga Hinata…" Naruto repeated to himself.

" Now I will be taking this Naruto, you're very lucky that I'm sparing you. Grow up strong, to come to avenge this moment. I long for you to be a worthy opponent. Right now, you're just a small boy with matches. Learn to use them, and become a man." Sasori said as he tied the dark chains around the block and was dragging it out.

"…wait…" Naruto said weakly. He stood up, still feeling numb everywhere except his legs and head. He walked slowly to Sasori and Hinata. When Naruto got the feeling of his left arm back, he placed his hand on the Block. It felt humid. He really wanted her by his side, he wanted to know her. He felt warmth when he looked at her. After a few minutes of just standing there looking up at the "angel", Sasori started to head back, until the block began to crack.

" What?" Sasori said completely alarmed. It cracked more and more until finally it shattered. Hinata fell to the ground along with all the clear jelly. Naruto hurried to her and gave her his coat he had retrieved from inside.

" Get away from her Naruto! She'll kill you!" Sasori shouted.

" No! She wouldn't do that!" Naruto shouted.

" How do you know that?" Sasori said, getting very angry.

" I…just know. And even if she did kill me, right here and now, I would die a happy death. Hello." Naruto turned to face Hinata.

Hinata opened her eyes. They were gray. Naruto did not remember being this happy in his entire life. She looked around, then at the large cloak around her, then at Naruto and Sasori.

" My name is Naruto, can you say Naruto?" Naruto asked.

" Na-ru-to." Hinata said slowly.

" Don't waste your time Naruto, she has the mind of a three year old!" Sasori shouted. " Now give me her or I'll-"

" No!" Naruto screamed stepping in the way of Sasori and Hinata.

" Naruto! I will not hesitate to finish you off right here and now. Give me the girl!" Sasori screamed.

" Just try it!" Naruto said, getting angry himself.

Sasori dropped his Akatsuki cloak. " It truly has been a while, since I've used myself."

Sasori rushed at Naruto but right before colliding, Sasori went around and smacked Hinata to the side.

This made Naruto so angry, that he crouched on all fours and grew fangs, his eyes turned red, and red chakra blazed around him. There Naruto was, screaming in anger.

Sasori gasped. " This is the demon powers?" He backed away a few steps. Naruto followed him, disappearing into the air, and reappearing behind Sasori, giving him a heavy kick to the head. Hinata ran to Naruto, and lightly placed her hand on him. He looked at her in rage, but after seeing her melancholy face, his rage died completely. And he was demon form no more.

Sasori saw this as an opportunity to attack, but Kisame appeared smacking Sasori back again with his large sword.

" Kisame!" Sasori shouted. " If you're here, that must mean-" Itachi, Mihniopaksu, and Zetsu appeared right after that.

" Let's destroy him." Kisame said. But it was too late, Sasori then disappeared, all the way back.

" I'll follow him!" Zetsu said about to take off.

But Itachi stopped him." Wait, it's pointless, he's faster than you, he'll just get back to his base and they will gang up on you. You may not be as lucky as he was just now. We can afford to let him go for now. We have her…"

A/N: Sorry this took so long, but plz review, review, review! Thank you! The story is going to get really interesting from here. I would have killed Sasori off there, but I've got plans for him, so I can't. But I've been tied with lots of hw lately, so plz don't expect the next one to be out so soon. Anyways, god bless you guyz and plz review.


	13. Saru

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Chapter Thirteen: Saru

" It's been a month since you have first been appointed Hokage of Konoha. What do you feel like doing today?" Shizune asked Haburi.

" I think I would like to go with you and Kimotsu on a mission." Haburi said smiling peacefully.

" A mission? Wouldn't you prefer if we got another ninja to do it for you? I could call anybody you'd like right now." Shizune said a bit puzzled as to why Haburi wanted to go on a mission.

" Not a real mission. I just want to venture out a bit. I feel like picking fruit." Haburi said. " I remember that there were many fruit trees where I used to train everyday. I would like to go there now."

" Very well." Shizune said.

Fifteen minutes later, Kimotsu, Shizune, and the Hokage were leaving Konoha on a dirt road. The birds were chirping, the trees and grass was green, and the animals were out eating.

" It truly is a beautiful day isn't it?" Haburi asked. He didn't need an answer, it was obvious. " I truly feel the life out here."

Kimotsu then spoke out of curiosity. " So about how far is this place we are going to?"

" About five miles from here. Except now we need to get off this dirt path. The training place lies deep within the forest." Haburi explained as they left the road and entered past the trees.

" It sure has been a long time since I've gone out like this." Haburi said.

An hour later, they had finally arrived. " Here it is. All of this, I built, and it was here that I trained." Haburi said.

Even though the training grounds were deep in the forest, it was a large opening. The trees surrounded it in the shape of a circle, giving the training ground a diameter of about two hundred feet. The ground was pure stone. With a few pillars and boulders here and there. There was much rubble around as well.

Kimotsu entered and looked around in amazement. " Wow…this is perfect." Suddenly, his face became very serious, " Except one thing. You two sense it two don't you?" Kimotsu asked. Haburi and Shizune both nodded and looked around. " Someone's here…" Kimotsu said. They all spread out searching for the person that was hiding.

Shizune was the first to find the boy. " Over here!" She shouted as Haburi and Kimotsu quickly rushed over. The stared down at the small boy huddled in a small ball looking straight into their eyes. His cheeks were soaked with his tears. His clothes were all torn as well. There was one aspect of the boy the stood out like a sore thumb, and that was his right arm. His arm was all black rock, looking like magma, the cracks shedding a dim light of orange.

Kimotsu gasped. " He's-"

" Shh!" Haburi said putting his index finger to his lips signaling silence. " Hello little boy, what's your name?"

The boy was silent for a moment then said in a soft voice, " Saru…"

" How did you get here Saru?" Haburi then asked nicely.

Saru struggled to answer, then said, " …I don't know…I…I can't remember."

" What do you remember?" Shizune asked.

" Nothing." Saru said sadly, then he began to wail loudly shouting that he was lost over and over again.

" Can you stand?" Kimotsu asked after Saru had stopped his tantrum.

" I think so." Saru said, slowly standing up without a problem.

" How old are you?" Haburi asked him.

" I don't know…" Saru replied again.

Then Haburi held out his large hand as Saru placed his hand in it. " Let's get back to the village and give this boy a proper meal, then we can clean him up and figure out where to go from there. Hello, my name is Rikou Haburi." Haburi said as they began to walk away from the training grounds and toward Konoha.

" But Hokage-sama, what about the fruit?" Kimotsu asked.

" I've suddenly lost my appetite. I have a terrible feeling about this. We will discuss that later, for now let's go." Haburi said picking up his pace.

Finally when they had arrived and gave Saru a meal and cleaned him up. They sat him down in Haburi's office.

" Saru, I want you to try your hardest to remember." Haburi said.

" Remember what?" Saru asked.

" Anything, anything at all. A memory of some sort, or how you got where we found you, anything."

Saru closed his eyes and clenched his fists. He sat there in silence for a moment then opened his eyes and sighed. " Nothing." He said.

" That's fine, don't worry." Haburi said comforting Saru.

" What are we going to do about him?" Kimotsu asked.

" Well seeing as how he must have been on his own for more than a year, I think I'm going to take him in." Haburi said.

" What do you mean take him in?" Kimotsu asked feeling surprised.

" I mean what I mean. I'm going to train this boy, he needs to know how to survive on his own." Haburi said forcefully.

" WHAT? That's insane!" Kimotsu said. " Hokage-sama, do you realize what that could bring? He may be one of the last of his clan and that-"

" I am very aware of what could happen. But let me tell you something, I am the Hokage around here, so I'm making the decisions. You don't have a say on this. I will train this boy, and that is final." Haburi said. " Do you have a problem with this Kimotsu?"

"…No not at all." Kimotsu said.

" Good," Haburi answered with a smile. " then I am appointing you to be his body guard?"

" WHAT? You must be joking!" Kimotsu screamed.

" I'm dead serious. Most of the time he will be training with me, but the rest of the time, when I have matters to attend to, you will watch out for him. We must guard him very closely." Haburi demanded.

" Hai." Kimotsu finally agreed.

" Saru. You are going to be trained by me. Do you understand?" Haburi asked.

Saru nodded his head excitedly. " when can we start? I've always wanted to get stronger because-" Saru stopped in his sentence and frowned. " I can't remember that either…"

Haburi put his hand on Saru's bony shoulder. " don't worry, in time, your memory will come back. We will start tomorrow."

" Ok." Saru said.

" Hokage-sama, I don't mean to be rude, but may I remind you that the duty of Hokage is not to stand around and train other people. You have paperwork to attend to, and lots of it. Also meetings and you never know what else may come up. Being Hokage doesn't really give you that much free time." Shizune said.

" Don't worry Shizune, I already have it figured out. Each day, I will work with Saru for five hours, then he can go wherever he wants in Konoha, and Kimotsu will be with him. The rest of the time I have, I will do my duties." Haburi said. " Kimotsu, why don't you show Saru around our village, then after, let him get some rest for tomorrow. It will be a big day for him."

" Yes sir. Let's go Saru, I'm going to show you around our village. My name is Kimotsu by the way."

Right before Kimotsu and Saru had left, Haburi stopped them saying, " Oh Saru, I'm going to train you for a full month, then we'll see how everything will be." Saru nodded and then left.

" I don't know what you see in that boy. He seems to be the last of his clan. They were all wiped out by the Akatsuki a few years ago weren't they?" Shizune asked.

" Yes, a tragedy. But I see great potential in this boy. Plus, I think I could train him good. I've already trained one person in my life, a second shouldn't be too hard. I just hope I'm not too rusty." Haburi said.

The next morning, Haburi walked over to where Saru was staying. Kimotsu was outside the door, guarding it with sleepy eyes.

" I'm glad that you were here all night. Did you tell him that he is not allowed to go outside of the village?" Haburi asked.

" Yes sir. And as for your comment for me being out here, it is my duty, I am simply following your orders." Kimotsu said with a slight smile.

" Very well. Now I will take it from here. Go and get some sleep." Haburi said dismissing Kimotsu from his duty.

" Thank you Hokage-sama."

" No thank you. I will be training with Saru at the training grounds where we found him." Haburi informed Kimotsu.

" Are you sure it's safe to go back there alone? Somebody may be looking for him." Kimotsu said.

" We'll be fine, I do know self defense."

Haburi knocked on Saru's door, then opened it. " Ready for our first training session?"

" Of course!" Saru shouted rushing out the door.

" Where are we going to train Haburi-san?" Saru asked.

" To the training grounds where we met you yesterday." Haburi said.

Saru stopped in his tracks. " I can't."

" Why not?" Haburi asked.

" Because I'm not supposed to leave the village." Saru said sadly.

Haburi laughed. " smart boy. Let me ask you something. Who told that to you?"

" Kimotsu"

" Well guess what, I told that to Kimotsu. I'm the big boss around here, so whatever I say, that's the way it goes. Now I'm giving you special permission to leave the village only when you're with me and I allow you to do so. How does that sound?" Haburi asked.

" Ok." Saru said.

Five minutes later, they were both standing outside the gates of Konoha. " Now, before we leave, I want to test your stamina. It's five miles from here to our destination. So what I want you to do, is run there, the fastest you can. But the trick is, you can't walk a single time. So go at the fastest speed that you can without overexerting yourself." Haburi said.

" Got it." Saru said. He took off at a pretty fast pace. Haburi was right behind him the whole way.

They finally arrived about fifteen minutes later. " Wow, pretty good!" Haburi said praising Saru. " But by the end of this month, you'll be able to cut that time in half."

" Really?" Saru asked in in amazement.

Haburi nodded. " Ok, now that we're here, I want to see where you are."

" I'm right here." Saru said.

" No, not literally, I mean in skill, as a ninja. Now, for training, it's usually going to be you against me, one on one. But sometimes, I may create obstacles for you. But today, I want you to come at me with all you've got." Haburi said.

" You mean…you want me to try to hurt you?" Saru asked.

" The best you can. Can you do it?" Haburi asked.

" I suppose." Saru said. " alright, here I come, are you ready?"

" As ready as you are." Haburi said.

Saru rushed toward Haburi until he was two feet away from him. Then with his gaining momentum, he leaped into the air and swung his right leg at Haburi's chest. Haburi just dodged to the side and let Saru go flying forward. Saru quickly landed on his feet and whirled around using his left arm attempting to punch Haburi's stomach.

Haburi simply caught Saru's tiny fist and held it in place, not allowing Saru his hand back. " what are you going to do now?"

Saru then tried to kick Haburi's shins with his legs. Haburi hopped back as Saru once again dashed after him. Saru used his momentum again going up about to jump. Haburi already has his arms crossed in front of him ready to block Saru's kick to the chest. However, Saru didn't jump after all, he then ducked and whirled his leg around trying to trip his opponent. Haburi jumped up and then backed away.

Saru stood up panting. " Wow, you're really good Haburi-san!"

" Are you trying your hardest Saru?" Haburi asked.

" Yes. And I can't even land a single blow!"

" You're good, with what you have. You know how to use your head. I liked that fake that you pulled back there." Haburi said.

" Thanks."

" Now we're going to make a very minor change. We are going to stay exactly the same, except now, I want you to come at me with this." Haburi said as he handed Saru a kunai.

" This could kill you. I wouldn't want that." Saru said.

" Trust me Saru, you aren't good enough to do that yet. You just have to have a little faith in me. All I ask of you, is that you try and give it your one hundred percent. Can you do that for me? Please?" Haburi asked.

"….Ok." Saru then rushed at Haburi, but this time with a kunai in his hand.

No matter how many times Saru tried, he could not even get close to landing a blow on Haburi. He was just too fast. He could read Saru easily, too easily. Even throwing the kunai didn't help. Haburi still dodged. Soon enough, the five hours had passed.

" Times up Saru." Haburi said.

Saru was gasping for air, sweating like never before. " how did I do?"

" Excellent. Today was only to test how good you were. And now I know. Next time I'll have different things planned out for us." Haburi said.

They then ran back to the village. Saru extremely excited feeling that he couldn't wait until the next day.

But it came faster than he thought. He found himself and Haburi outside the Konoha gates again, just like they were before.

" Saru, I want you to run there again. Know this, you will never be able to walk out of every time that we train. But this time, do not let me catch you. Every time that I catch you, you will have to knock down a tree in the forest, with no weapon at all except your feet and hands."

" What? But that's impossible!" Saru shouted.

" No it's not. Everyday, the number of times I catch you will build up. Ready? Begin." Haburi said as he gave Saru a ten second start. Five seconds later, he had caught up to Saru and tagged him once. " that's one tree!"

Two seconds later, Haburi had tagged Saru again. Haburi constantly tagged Saru again and again, never stopping. Saru kept running faster and faster, but it was never enough. By the time they had got there, Saru lay down totally exhausted.

" Now, you will have to knock down four hundred and fifteen trees." Haburi said.

" when will I do this?" Saru asked. " it'll take me more than five hours to knock down that many trees with brute strength."

" That is correct. But I'm not wasting the five hours I have to watch you break down trees, so we will train regularly. You will have to knock down the trees in your spare time. Kimotsu will accompany you so you will be able to go out here. He will tell me the exact number of trees you knocked down." Haburi said.

" I thought I could only go with you outside the village." Saru said.

" I'm giving you more freedom. Shizune is angry with me because she believes that my methods of training are too rough. But trust me, this will be good for you. Now, today I'm going to teach you how to channel your chakra. Do you see this large pile of rubble?" Haburi asked pointing to the pile of small rocks three times taller than him.

" yes…" Saru said.

" well I want you to mold me a pillar made of that. Using nothing but your chakra." Haburi said. " It may seem hard, but it's doable, observe."

Haburi stood with his eyes fixed on the pile. He extended his arm and lightly placed it on the surface. Suddenly, a blue aura surrounded Haburi. It not only surrounded Haburi, but it began to surround the pile of rocks as well. Then, Saru witnessed the rocks being moved by the chakra itself, all of it slowly being molded into a large pillar of rubble. The pillar was medium sized in thickness. So it was extremely tall.

" wow…" Saru said.

" Now you try." Haburi said as he let the pillar fall back into the rubble pile. " Go over there and place your hand on the pile."

Saru did what he was told. " Now concentrate, and release your chakra to its fullest."

Saru stood there, concentrating, he gritted his teeth. Finally, a very tiny blue aura surrounded Saru. " good, now transfer it to the pile."

Saru managed to do that as well, but with much difficulty. By this time, Saru was already very sweaty.

" Very good! Now, shape the pillar, you have control of the rocks, all you have to do is move them." Haburi said.

After much concentration, Saru fell to the ground. " I can't, it's too heavy."

" Try again, but this time, don't go for the whole pile, go stone by stone, that will make it easier." Haburi said.

Saru did that for the five hours that day. His progress was a pillar about a foot tall. He was more exhausted then he had ever been in his entire life. " Haburi, can you carry me, I can't walk anymore?" Saru asked.

" One thing you must learn, do things by yourself. That's what training is all about. I'm just here to show you what to do, you have got to do it. If you can't walk, crawl. If you can't crawl wriggle your way back." Haburi said harshly.

" Why are you being so cold?" Saru asked holding back tears.

" Training was hard for me, and it paid off. As I said before, please just trust me, just because I show you a cold shoulder doesn't mean that I don't care. I'm rooting for you, but I can't do things for you. I'm trying to toughen you up that's all. Now let's go." Haburi said.

They finally came back to Konoha an hour later. Saru went to his bed and dropped and fell asleep.

" He looks exhausted." Kimotsu said.

" He is. But this is the way it has to be. Remember to wake him up an hour later, I want you to take him out for tree breaking. Give him tips on using his chakra, but don't do anything for him. He has to learn on his own, that nothing is handed to you, you have to work for it." Haburi said.

" I've never seen this side of you. I got to tell you, you scaring me a bit. Poor little kid. No, I feel sorry for your enemies, especially since you're the TaiGen." Kimotsu said.

" I have work to attend to, if you'll excuse me." Haburi said, leaving.

" Saru, it's time." Kimotsu said.

" Time for breakfast?" Saru asked with his eyes still closed.

" No, time to train." Kimotsu said. Saru opened his eyes. " we're going to train you."

" but the sun's setting." Saru said.

" I doesn't matter if we're out there all night, you've got to knock down some trees." Kimotsu said. " Let's go."

Saru got up and they painfully walked all the way back over to the training grounds.

" Ok, now pick a tree, any tree." Kimotsu said.

" They're all huge! Um.. I pick this one." Saru said pointing to a nearby tree.

" Ok, now punch through that. No matter how many times it takes, just get through it. One trick, is to concentrate your chakra into your fist. That will give it ten times the force." Kimotsu said. " Watch this."

Kimotsu walked over to a different tree, and without even trying, knocked it down with a simple tap. " that's how good you're going to get with enough practice. Now start. It's already nightfall, so I'll get a fire going."

Kimotsu then lit the tree that had just fallen with a fire technique. Sora was concentrating on transferring the little chakra he had left into his right fist. He then punched the large tree as hard as he could, leaving a small mark.

Saru repeated this process countless times until finally the sun was beginning to rise. Kimotsu put out the fire with a water technique still keeping watch. " Stay here and work on that while I dispose of the remains of this tree." Kimotsu said as he dragged the burnt tree and dragged it into the forest. Sora continued his training. He had actually cut through about one fourth of the tree now. But his knuckle's were extremely swollen and bloody. As were his shins.

Kimotsu came back ten minutes later. " alright Saru, we've got to get back to Konoha."

They walked back at a normal pace but it still took long. When they arrived at the Konoha gates, Haburi was there waiting.

" Ready to begin our daily training Saru?"

Saru sighed, then nodded.

" Ok, as usual, I'll give you a ten second head start, and every time I tag you, that's one more tree. Go." Haburi said.

Sora took off, as fast as he could, as if he were running for his life. He surely didn't want no more trees, he had to do over four hundred already. But it was inevitable, Haburi had tagged him four hundred times exactly.

" Looks like you have eight hundred and fifteen trees to go. For training, I want you to make the pillar." Haburi said.

This routine went on for two weeks. Make a pillar by day, and take down trees by night. Saru was improving very rapidly. Now, Haburi would only get about twenty tags at the most on Saru. And now, Saru could take down a tree within an hour.

" Won't you run out of trees eventually Haburi-san?" Saru asked one day during daytime training.

" No. Because we use special Jutsu's to make trees grow instantly. So every time one goes down somewhere, another goes up." Haburi said. " Now concentrate, the pillar is almost completed."

Saru had finally finished building the very tall pillar. He stared in pride at his masterpiece.

" Good, now, what I want you to do, is walk up it." Haburi said.

" You mean climb it?"

" No walk up it, you need to fix your chakra on your feet. Then you can stick like so." Haburi began to walk up horizontally. " If you put too much chakra, you will damage the pillar and it will collapse, forcing you to build it up again."

Saru tried. At first he got up about ten feet high. Then he accidentally concentrated too much chakra on his right foot. The Pillar fell and landed back into one large pile within seconds.

" Make the pillar again. And restart." Haburi said.

Another week passed by and Saru had almost reached the top. Haburi was barely tagging Saru now and Saru could also knock trees down with single blows.

One night, when Kimotsu went to dispose of the wood, Sora sat down on another tree he had knocked down. He was tired, hardly getting any sleep.

Suddenly, he heard a twig snap, something was moving. He heard a bush rustling near him. He pulled out a kunai from his new kunai pouch that Haburi had given him a few days ago and threw a kunai at the movement coming from inside the bush. " Who's there?" he shouted.

He heard a squeal, then a squirrel fell out of the bush, dead, with Saru's kunai in its chest. Saru rushed over to get the kunai, but on his way, he felt a sharp pain in his head. He grabbed his head in pain and fell to his knees screaming. But he couldn't even hear his own scream.

---

Then Saru felt his mind drift. He saw himself, as a little boy practicing punches standing on soft green grass somewhere.

---

Then his mind drifted back to reality. His head stopped hurting and he was there, all alone. " Was that……a memory?" Saru asked himself. A second later, Kimotsu appeared.

" Are you ok? I heard you screaming." He said.

" I'm fine. I just…killed a squirrel, that's all." Saru said as he pulled out his bloody kunai from the squirrel's limp body. Saru then began to tell Kimotsu about what had just happened. " Kimotsu?"

" Yes?"

"….Nothing." Saru said changing his mind. He decided to keep this to himself.

The last week of the first month of training, every time Kimotsu would leave to dispose of the trees, Saru would kill an animal, gaining a very tiny piece of his memory each time.

When the month had ended, Haburi said, " Good job Saru. I've taught you how to channel your chakra, and be aware of your surroundings. From here one, it will only get harder. All this time, I've been going very easy on you, no more. You have one day free from training. Take it, you need the rest. And since you have no more trees to knock down, you will no longer need to go knock them down on your own time. But now that you're stronger, I am giving you permission to leave with Kimotsu whenever you want. But it must be with me or him. But for now, take this day to rest. We still have lots to cover." Haburi said.

" I wonder…" Saru thought to himself, " that if I kill something bigger than a rat or a squirrel, if I will get a bigger piece of my memory. I will have to find out. I'll convince Kimotsu to train with me personally as well."


	14. Training Beyond Training

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Chapter Fourteen: Training Beyond Training

"Naruto, You are finally of age." Zetsu said after having talked with the rest of the group.

Naruto looked back at all of them in confusion, "Of age? For what?" Naruto asked.

"Usually, to become a full Akatsuki member, one must go through a specific training. It's a training that not only tests one's strength, but it tests the mind, as well as emotions. This training has been proved to make people go insane, but those who survive, are in the Akatsuki today. The process takes about six months; however, we will be putting you there for two and a half years." Zetsu replied.

"What?" Naruto exclaimed. "Two and a half years? What if something happens within that time, I'll have to be here. What about Hinata?"

"While you train, we will all train her while you are gone." Itachi said cutting in. "There is a reason for all of this Naruto. You must understand and trust us. Do you think we would let you go now, if we were in need? Yes we have Hinata; however, the other side will not dare make a move until at least two and a half years."

"Why not?" Naruto asked.

"Because they know that we will train her. So they will wait, wait until she is strong enough, so they could use her. After this time, you will come back just as strong as any one of us, a true Akatsuki member. That is, if you come back. This training is not light Naruto, and you must not underestimate it. If you let your guard down at any moment, you will die. This training was only meant for the best of the best, and we believe you are ready for it. You will be the youngest person to have ever taken the test and passed." Mihniopaksu said.

"Are you sure about this?" Naruto asked as he eyed each member carefully. All of them nodded. "When will I begin?"

"Tomorrow, we have already made arrangements. You will be training on an island, remember, this training will test you on every aspect, be aware. One more thing Naruto, do your best to hold back your demon powers. You can't get the best training if you do unleash it. You also may be influenced by the overwhelming powers inside you. Hold them back, or they will take control. You and Kisame will be taking a boat tomorrow. Any attempted escape of the island, will result in immediate capture and assassination, even for you Naruto." Itachi said coldly.

---

Saru did a back flip dodging the kunai being thrown at him by Kimotsu. He had done it; he had gone through every single one of Kimotsu's obstacles.

"Well done Saru! You have completed every thing within four days. I never knew you were so determined. The usual time it takes for a strong shinobi is about two weeks. You have done well. It's time to head back to Konoha, don't let me beat you there!" Kimotsu said suddenly taking off towards the village.

However, Saru was right behind him. He jumped up to the trees, skipping from branch to branch while below him, Kimotsu ran extremely fast. But Saru was not new at this anymore; he was already well trained, and could easily beat this speed. He sped up, leaving Kimotsu in the dust.

Finally, the village was in sight, Saru was almost there, almost ready to reach Konoha before Kimotsu did. Until suddenly Kimotsu stepped out from behind a tree holding out a kunai waiting for Saru. The kunai and Saru connected, causing Saru's body to fall to the ground.

"Always be aware of your surroundings Saru. Let's go, we can get that fixed up in no time." Kimotsu said turning around only to find the real Saru holding a kunai at Kimotsu's belly.

_Poof_! The Saru behind Kimotsu disappeared. "Well played Saru." Kimotsu said. "I guess that means you win."

Saru only smiled and entered the village of Konoha beside Kimotsu.

Two hours had passed, and Saru was at home safe and sound sleeping. Kimotsu was reporting to Haburi what had happened that day.

"I'm telling you Hokage-sama, that boy is extraordinary. He passed every single training method I laid out for him in four days. I couldn't even do it that fast when I was five years older than him! Saru has more potential then I thought." Kimotsu said.

"So it would seem. I feel….as though he is hiding something from me. I can't figure what it is yet, but it bothers me. We still have to keep an eye on him, in the mean time; I would like to enroll him in the Chunnin exam." Haburi said.

"What? That's crazy! First of all, he doesn't have teammates, second of all…he's nine!" Kimotsu said. "At least he was able to remember that."

"We'll figure out something, I know this boy can pass this exam without a problem, he doesn't have a lot, but he uses his head for everything he does. With his determination, he is able to train his body and mind. When he first came here, he didn't have much, but now, he is quicker and stronger than all the kids his age. He fights the battle as if it were a game, a simple game that he has already figured out. We'll find him teammates, the age won't be a problem. As Hokage, I will request special permission to allow his entering in the Chunnin exam." Haburi said.

---

"One thing that we always mention to the people who come here." Kisame began as they finally reached the white shore of the very large island. "There are two different scrolls, just like in the Chunnin exam. There is the dark scroll, and the light scroll. There will be many clues, puzzles, and obstacles in the island that you will have to conquer in order to acquire them. Make sure you have them before we come back for you. Once again Naruto, don't leave the island, we have spared no one. We cannot make an acceptation, not even for you. Good luck." Kisame pushed the boat out to sea waving at Naruto who was left on the island to train.

Naruto stood there on the white sand. He was wearing sandals, shorts, and a sleeveless shirt. He entered the wilderness with only a kunai in his hand.

Naruto wasn't too happy about the sudden change of things. But he intended to see this thing through until the end. Before entering the deep forest, Naruto first was careful, and created about ten bunshins to scout the shores for anything unusual. They came back with nothing. Then all ten Naruto's entered the forest cautiously.

After traveling about a mile, the Naruto's came to a large stone floor with a small pillar up to Naruto's waist at the very end. Naruto carefully walked around the circular floor, and came up to the pillar in order to examine it.

The pillar was just regular stone, but it had a weird shaped hole on top. "This must be something like a key hole. I'm guessing that I will have to find the key. I just don't know what it is yet." Naruto said to himself looking around.

After having explored the island more, Naruto came to a very wide open space, perfect for training any big moves. But he saw a small figure at the distance, walking toward him. As soon as the figure was close enough to be seen, Naruto gasped. The figure was Orochimaru, with intent to kill.

"What are you doing here?" Naruto asked getting ready to fight.

"Naruto-kun, let's see how much you have improved since we last fought…"

"This can't be…How can you be here?" Naruto asked confused.

"That doesn't matter. What matters is that I'm here now, and you have something that belongs to me." Orochimaru said smiling.

"Actually, my body belongs to me. What makes you think that I'll give up all what I have to live for just for you? The only thing I ever saw of you was a weird pitiful person who could hardly be called a shinobi." Naruto said. "I understand what's going on here. You're not real."

Orochimaru laughed. "What makes you say that?"

"Because you wouldn't be here. You don't have the guts to come here and attack me by yourself. You fear my constant growing potential." Naruto said.

"What if I didn't come alone?" Orochimaru asked still keeping his devious smile.

"Then I suppose it wouldn't be good for me now would it?" Naruto asked. "This is probably some time of Genjutsu. Part of the training. If you think you're real, then why don't you come and stab me with that sword that you hide?"

Orochimaru only laughed slightly again. "Very well Naruto-kun." He said as he opened his mouth wide and pulled out a sword. In a split second Orochimaru covered the distance between Naruto and himself attempting to stab Naruto in the belly.

_CHING_! Naruto's kunai clashed with Orochimaru's sword as he barely managed to block the attack. Naruto had his eyes wide opened: Orochimaru was real, and he was there, there for Naruto.

Naruto pushed back and once again got ready.

Orochimaru laughed and said, "Do you believe me now?"

"This…can't…..be……" Naruto said in pain as he looked down at his left leg. There was a deep gash in it which blood was slowly dripping from. "You poisoned me?" Naruto asked feeling faint.

"Anything goes here; you just had to be careful." Orochimaru said. "You needed a simple scroll," Orochimaru held out a blue sealed scroll, and then swallowed it. "You couldn't even get that."

_Poof_! "You're wrong Orochimaru, I will get it. But now I know what I'm looking for." Naruto said angrily. "I'm coming at you with all I've got…"

"You can try, but it still won't be enough." Orochimaru stated.

---

"Chunnin exam?" Saru asked.

"It would seem so. Apparently, Haburi believes that you are ready." Kimotsu explained to Saru in Saru's living quarters.

"What do you think Kimotsu-san?" Saru asked.

Kimotsu was silent for a moment, then sighed, saying, "Saru…you're…unique. I think that Haburi is definitely rushing things. You're only nine, and extremely strong. This isn't normal."

"But isn't being strong good?" Saru asked.

"Not all the time. Right now Saru, you are very young and so…well, let's just say that you can be influenced by many people older than you. With your power, if someone were to change you, then that would cause problems for many people." Kimotsu said.

"What do you mean?"

"It's hard to explain. I just think that Haburi should be a little more careful with you. That's all."

Saru then frowned, "So are you saying that you don't have faith in me? You don't think I can do this?"

"I didn't say that. I have no doubt that you can. But you're still very young. You've only been with us for a few months now. There have been very few people that have progressed this early. They are prodigies. But what happens to them? They end up…never mind. I know you can do this Saru, but I'm not so sure if you should. But Haburi is Hokage, so I have no say in this." Kimotsu said scratching his head.

Saru stood up looking determined. "I'm going to do this, even if it makes you a bit uncomfortable. The way I see it, I'm progressing really fast, and they say that not many people are like me. I'm strong, and I want to be stronger. I want to be able to fight other people in the Chunnin exams. Kimotsu, you are really strong, so please, teach me all you know."

Kimotsu only stood silent for a few moments. Finally he stood up, "I suppose you won't change your mind. In that case, I have no choice but to do what you ask of me to. I'll pick you up tomorrow at five in the morning. The Chunnin exam is in a month from now. You'll have to be ready. From here on out, the training won't be obstacles, but full on fighting. Each day I'm only going to get harder on you. Remember, this is what you wanted. There is no way out now. I'll see you soon…" He left closing the door leaving Saru with a large grin on his face. He was going to be in the Chunnin exams.

---

Naruto was feeling really weakened from the poison, but he could feel that something was wrong. Either Orochimaru was going easy on him, or this wasn't Orochimaru. Whoever it was, it did have the exact fighting style of him though. Even though Orochimaru seemed to be going easy on him, it was still a very tough fight. With only a kunai, Naruto couldn't really set many weapon traps, but he could do other things.

He was now being chased through the forest. But Naruto had a plan. First, when he thought he was far enough ahead, he created a rasengan in his hand and put it to the ground, creating a large hole. He had to do this fast, Orochimaru was coming…

A few moments later, Orochimaru had appeared, looking a bit weary but extremely bloodthirsty. Naruto was in front of him a few meters facing him in a crouching position. Due to the poison, Naruto was drawing short breaths, he would have to rest soon, but he couldn't with Orochimaru around. He had to get that scroll, so he would not stop until he retrieved it. And there was only one way to do that, Orochimaru had to die.

Orochimaru gave Naruto a nasty smile and walked forward, with purple chakra surrounding him going crazy like large flames. "Don't tell me that you have given up Naruto-kun. This was not much of a challenge at all."

Naruto stood silent, not moving, looking straight into Orochimaru's eyes.

Orochimaru then stopped. "Don't think that I'll fall for such simple traps. A hole in the ground, with leaves and branches to cover it up. What a beginner's move. You disappoint me Naruto; I suppose it's time to end it now then."

But just before Orochimaru could do anything further, two hands from under the ground came up beside his feet and grabbed the ankles firmly. Orochimaru looked down in surprise. Just then, Naruto stood up from his crouching position revealing a very long strand of what seemed to be a thin but firm vine. He held the vine out in front of him and cut it with the kunai, apparently triggering some kind of trap. At that moment, sharpened tree trunks appeared from the very top of the trees speeding at Orochimaru who was unable to dodge. They each hit him, piercing his body. 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 newly made spears now held Orochimaru in place, bleeding. The hands at his ankles did not move either.

Naruto then spoke, "How about you show me who you really are? You're too weak to be Orochimaru. Had it really been him, I would have been dead in half this time. Who are you? Either way, it's over for you."

Orochimaru just laughed spewing blood from his mouth. "Very well Naruto-kun. But it's too sad that you will never know who I am." He then made a few hand seals without saying anything and suddenly turned into purple flames and was gone. All except the blue scroll which now lay on the ground.

_Poof_! The hands below disappeared and Naruto continued back to the place with the strange keyhole.

After having inserted it, the large circular floor actually opened up, revealing a dark staircase too far to see the bottom. "I suppose there's only one thing to do now, go down this thing. I'm prepared for whatever is in there." Naruto said.

After about an hour of walking down the endless stair steps, Naruto finally reached a floor that was not descending but only led to a door. It was unlocked so Naruto entered the large room past the door very carefully. It was extremely dark in there, so Naruto held out his kunai in front of him and said, "Akaakato Kunai!" Suddenly, his knife in front of him gave a brilliant glow from the glowing fire that had just appeared. It lit up the room, revealing hundreds of corpses all on the floors and walls.

Naruto stepped back a bit, trying his best to be silent. Whatever had killed all these shinobi, was still in there. Naruto then lifted the flame high over his head, revealing a huge creature that covered the large ceiling. The creature seemed to be attached someway; it also had more than twenty large heads that could each swallow Naruto whole. Some were large then others, but they were all still humongous. Every single head looked at Naruto, and he knew that if he didn't do something soon, he was going to be dinner.

Suddenly, one of the heads dropped what seemed to be dark green saliva on the floor which landed one of the corpses, deteriorating it instantly. Naruto knew then, that it was acid.

Why was Naruto here? He needed a scroll to open the floor, and he had done exactly that. So what did he need to do now? But Naruto did not wonder for long, because soon after he saw it; a black scroll lay stuck to the ceiling, in the middle of all the heads. He needed to get that.

If Naruto was going to fight them, then he needed to know what he was dealing with. There were several strategies he had already come up with in his mind, but he wanted to know how strong they all were.

He held out his left hand, and created a rasengan. He then threw it up in the air as hard as he could. But before the rasengan had gotten even half way there, one of the heads swallowed it and snapped back. It exploded but did nothing.

Next, Naruto started running around, stepping on corpses when he needed to but tried to avoid them. He quickly moved deeper into the room, heading towards the wall. One of the heads reached down with such speed, attempting to swallow Naruto, but missed barely.

Naruto flipped back panting. His heart was pounding, these creatures were fast. If he didn't watch out, then it would be over soon. Then Naruto had a different idea. He put his hands together and shouted, "Bunshin no Jutsu!" About ten shadow clones appeared all around the room. They all ran up the walls, sticking to the side with chakra. But no matter how fast they tried to run, one head would ram into the wall, leaving the imprint of its teeth where the Bunshin was. But they were not real, only an image. So no matter how fast the heads attacked, the Naruto's would only keep on going.

"Let's see if they tire out." Naruto said quietly, hiding amongst the corpses. "At least they aren't that smart."

So Naruto waited, there in the stench, and the darkness. He had turned his kunai off and held it beside him. He waited for hours as all the heads just kept on ramming into the walls, causing pieces of stone to drop. After about two hours, Naruto turned his head up to look at what was going on. The heads weren't tiring out, they were only getting faster and hitting harder. That's how it was for what seemed like almost a day. Without food, Naruto felt a little weak. The poison's effect had finally wore off, but he could not defeat hunger with nothing. Finally, in the midst of all the hitting, everything stopped, everything was silent.

Naruto slowly got up after having seen that the heads were all hanging, each of them reaching the floor, as if they were dead. Naruto quickly went and sliced right through the necks on each of them. It took a bit of time, but he was still able to do it. Naruto stood in silence standing over the puddles of blood. He then looked up and saw that it wasn't over.

Another creature was coming, not a head hanging to a ceiling, but it had a body. It quickly dropped to the floor as Naruto dashed to the side. He tightly grasped his kunai ready to fight.

The creature was very tall, about nine feet, with four large muscular arms that each led up to four large claws.

Naruto just stood there, still hungry. "Let's get this over with," he sighed.

The monster rushed at him with an amazing speed, but Naruto was ready. He crouched and spun around the monster and got behind it just as it passed him. He then slammed his kunai in the back of its neck shouting, "Akaakato Kunai!" He then pushed off the monster's back with his feet and landed on the other side of the room as he sent the monster flying into the wall with its head lit on fire.

Naruto had lost his kunai, but everything was now over. He then walked up and retrieved the scroll, and left.

Finally outside, Naruto stood there and watched as the circular floor automatically closed. He then looked at the black scroll which now lay in his hands. He then opened it with caution.

Inside read: _Look to the sky when there is a full moon, you will have to retrieve the last scroll very soon. Do not waste your time and wait, you will soon find the gate. Beware of this last task, for it may be your last._

Naruto looked at the setting sun. He then looked at the distant moon which was now a bit visible, if something was going to happen on a full moon, then he had better prepare for it, because he had a full month.

Naruto spent the next month constantly training. He increased his speed by practically double, running around the island everyday. He also meditated and did regular exercises like pull-ups and pushups. He searched the island, building shelter for himself. He became accustomed to most of the island. It seemed to be pretty deserted. But he had not trouble with food; he could simple kill a rabbit or catch a fish. Each day he would use as much chakra as possible, and then overnight exercise physically. He hardly slept, but looked at the moon every night, waiting for the moment.

Finally it had come. The full moon he had been waiting for. At first, Naruto saw nothing. But after a few minutes, he saw something he did not expect. He rubbed his eyes to see if it was true, and it was. His eyes did not deceive him; he was looking at a large piece of land with a white palace on it floating way up in the air.

"How am I going to get up there?" Naruto asked himself. He just looked up at the palace in the sky, way over the trees, so far from the island.

Naruto then came to an idea. He started to run through the forest, all the way until he was practically under the floating island. The then formed many hand seals in a matter of seconds and crouched down to the ground and put his hands on the damp earth. "Doton: Sinjuu no Jutsu!"

Suddenly, the earth below him began to rise forming a pillar. It continued to rise and lift him up and up until Naruto had finally reached the island. He simply stepped on the floating island and watched as the very tall pillar crumpled back to dirt and fell to the ground. After a few minutes, the island Naruto had been on for the past month disappeared. All Naruto saw now was as if he was in the sky, and there was no land or water or anything below him. Simply more sky. It was unusual because there were no clouds, but Naruto just turned around to face the palace.

It was much larger than he had thought it was. The front had two very large blue doors that were slightly open, enough for Naruto to enter. Naruto silently whispered the poem that he had read in the black scroll which he now had in his back pocket of his shorts. Naruto entered the huge palace weaponless, hoping for the best. This was the last test; it was bound to be hard.

Naruto entered to be surprised once again. The palace was completely empty. It was very clean. Naruto could almost see his reflection on the blue and white checkered tiles all on the floor. At the very end of the palace was a large window allowing light to pass through. On the left and right sides of the palace, there were many other windows, so the humongous room was not the least bit dim, but perfectly fine.

Naruto only walked deeper into the palace as the doors suddenly closed behind him. Naruto looked back, but then kept on going. He walked farther and farther into the palace. Finally, he saw a figure in the very middle of it all. It was too far so he had to get closer. Unlike Orochimaru, this figure did not advance toward Naruto. It only stood still and stiff. Naruto got ready to spring into action at any moment. He couldn't end here.

Finally when Naruto was close enough, he could see a blonde boy, just about his height. Only, the boy had his head down, so Naruto couldn't see his face. The boy had a dark blue shirt and orange shorts. He wore nothing on his feet.

When Naruto was even closer, he spoke to the person. "Who are you?" Naruto asked, daring to move a bit nearer.

When the boy picked up his head, Naruto gasped. It was him. Exactly like Naruto now.

"This is Genjutsu…" Naruto said taking three steps back but stopped because the boy spoke.

"Stop…please, don't leave me. I don't want to be alone, not again." The boy said with tears in his eyes.

Naruto only backed away more shaking his head in doubt. But the boy then took a few steps forward. "Please don't leave me! Don't go! You can't do this to me…"

Naruto only backed away faster, still shaking his head. This time, the boy stopped, dropped his head down and said, "I asked you nicely. But you still want to go. I can't make you want to stay, but I can make you have to stay!" The boy looked up showing slit eyes for pupils. His eyes were red and the boy grew claws instead of finger nails. Also, red chakra surrounded the boy just like Orochimaru. This boy was Naruto, only in demon form.

"You will stay!" The boy screamed charging at Naruto. Naruto barely managed to dodge the clawing attack that the boy used. Even though Naruto moved and went behind the boy, the chakra followed him and knocked him threw the air.

Before Naruto could he the ground, his opponent was under him, kicking him way up in the atmosphere once again. However, before Naruto hit the ceiling, the boy was there right above him. Naruto felt weak already, as if all his physical energy had been drained from him.

The boy grabbed Naruto's shirt and pulled him close so that they were less than a foot away from each other. Naruto looked straight into the eyes of himself, those demon red eyes, and he relived all his life again up until now. He then realized something as his opponent gave him a strong punch sending him speeding toward the ground.

Naruto hit the floor with such impact, but it did not even make a small scratch to the checkered floor. Naruto fell and stood looking at the palace ceiling way above him.

What Naruto realized was that all his life, he had been living it for someone else. And that made him unhappy. All his life, he did not have a choice; he was only put to do things, trying to please those around him. He wanted a family, but the Akatsuki was definitely missing something. Naruto couldn't figure it out, but he felt so incomplete. So unwanted by everyone.

Then Naruto saw his opponent suddenly appear a few meters above him, coming down quickly with his fist in the air, ready to bash Naruto's head in. Naruto got up and dashed out of the way, but his opponent reached the ground and caught up to Naruto appearing in front of him. The boy kicked Naruto upwards in the chin, leaving Naruto practically floating in the air with his body parallel to the ground facing up towards the ceiling.

The boy then got under Naruto and with all his might, stretched out his fist and jumped up, clashing with Naruto's back. The boy's fist made contact with Naruto's back and went through Naruto's body reappearing out of Naruto's stomach. Blood gushed from his belly and back, back down to the floor and all over the boy's face. The boy took his hand out from Naruto and let him fall to the ground.

Naruto lay there drenched in his own blood, staring straight into the eyes of his opponent once again. Naruto then slowly felt the hole that the boy had made in Naruto's stomach. Naruto looked back at his hands to see that they were full of blood. He looked back at the boy who was now smiling evilly. He had to fight back, if not, then he was nothing. If he could get out of this mess, then he could fix things. If he was strong enough, he could show people how important he was. He wasn't just a pawn to be bossed around, he was important. And if Naruto ever wanted to change, then he would have to survive this.

With these thoughts running frantically through his mind, Naruto disappeared from his own puddle of blood right before his opponent was able to step on his head. He reappeared behind his opponent, attempting to side kick him. But his other self simply blocked and punched Naruto away from him.

Naruto did a back flip and landed on the ground, finally stopping after sliding a little bit. He looked up at his opponent, who was now running toward him. He waited until the boy got there, blocking the first punch as it came in contact with his open hand. The force caused the pain to surge through his whole arm, leaving it temporarily numb. Naruto could only block the second punch thrown at him with his good arm. But after the punch it became numb as well. Naruto was too slow to dodge the third punch as it came in contact with his face, sending him flying once again. Naruto landed on the ground in pain. He got up as he started to feel the sensation back in his arms.

"I'm going to end this!" Naruto screamed with determination beyond doubt. He quickly performed many hand seals ready to do the strong Jutsu he had in mind. But his opponent only began to laugh. "WHAT'S SO FUNNY?" Naruto shouted angrily.

"You can't use Jutsu in here. We can only rely on our brute strength and speed. You don't have enough to take me on." Naruto's opponent said.

What he said was very true, Naruto was unable to do his Jutsu, leaving him totally defenseless with a hole in his stomach still bleeding. He had so much to lose; he could not give up now. Even if it did not look good, Naruto was inspired to keep on going. He had to get back to everybody, survive his training. Every else had done it. Hinata was training out there, and he had to see her again. He could not die here. If he did, then he would leave everything incomplete. He could not fulfill himself.

Naruto only clutched his stomach in pain as even more blood leaked to the floor leaving another puddle. He would not lose. Suddenly, Naruto felt so angry, he looked straight into his opponent's eyes and became enraged.

Naruto then began to let his feelings take control of himself. Red chakra engulfed him as his wound healed quickly with a sizzling sound. His fingernails grew to claws, just like his opponent. "Time to even the odds a bit isn't it?" Naruto asked smiling deviously.

His opponent disappeared and reappeared behind him attempting to punch Naruto, but he did the exact same thing and punched his opponent in the back of the head. The boy went flying, but not very far. Naruto's chakra reached out and grabbed his opponent's head, crushing it from the force. The fight was over.

Suddenly, everything was gone. Naruto was calm; he was back at the island, with one difference. He now had a black scroll and a white scroll. He had done it; he was an official Akatsuki member. Now he could make it out into the world and change what people thought of him. He was not to be messed with. Only a month had gone by, he intended to spend the rest of his time on the island, training in everyway he could. And that's exactly what he did.

Two and a half years later and Naruto was sixteen, almost seventeen. He stood at the shore, standing tall and proud watching in the distance as Kisame came in a boat to retrieve him. As Naruto stepped into the boat, he noticed something.

"You're not so tall anymore Kisame-san." Naruto said with his deeper voice standing taller than the Akatsuki member.

Kisame looked at Naruto with a smile. "I'm surprised you didn't call me fishy-san. You have grown Naruto. I think you might need a hair cut." Kisame pointed to Naruto's long hair that reached down his back. Naruto also had sideburns that came down the side of his face. "Let's see just how much you've grown, we'll test how much better you've gotten since we last fought. I hope I won't be disappointed."

Naruto only smiled and said, "Trust me, you wont' be…"

A/N: Hey guys, I'm sorry this chapter took so long to come out. But now I am officially in summer vacation. So the chapters will come out sooner. But plz read and review! I want to know how I'm doing. Thanks. Oh yeah, and from here on, things start getting really cool.


	15. Friends of the Past

Disclaimer: I do now own Naruto

Chapter Fifteen: Friend's of the Past

"Was he really that good?" Saru asked Haburi as they stood together watching the gates of Konoha open.

Haburi smiled. "Yes he was. Second best I've ever taught."

"Second?" Saru looked a bit puzzled. "Who's the first?"

"You are." Haburi said patting Saru on the back. Saru was now twelve years old ever since a few days ago. He sure had grown. He was now a Jounnin. He was also still taking lessons with Haburi. His memory had increased a lot ever since he first came to Konoha. He now basically killed anything that wasn't human. He was so close to finding out what had happened in the past.

Saru and Haburi as well as many people from Konoha were waiting for some guests. The three shinobi entered through the gates into the village of Konoha. Ryu, Kyozoku, and Ketsu, the new Tennoushihai. They made their way over to Haburi.

Haburi stepped forward and hugged his former student, Hage Ryu. "My how you've grown!" Haburi said with a large smile.

"My how you've aged!" Ryu said jokingly. Haburi laughed as Ryu noticed Saru. "Who's this?"

"This is Saru, we found him almost three years ago. He's been my apprentice ever since." Haburi said.

Ryu squatted down a bit, until he was eye level with Saru. Then he looked straight into Saru with piercing eyes. Ryu's face was so serious it intimidated Saru a bit. After what seemed like ages, Ryu stood back up a bit and looked straight at Haburi. "Can we talk for a moment?"

"Sure." Haburi said. "Well, well, well. If it isn't Ketsu! I've heard so many stories about you." Haburi then turned his attention to Kyozoku and Ketsu.

"I came back, just for a little bit." Ketsu said not even managing a slight smile.

"This is Kyozoku." Ryu said introducing the red-haired pirate and the Hokage.

They shook hands as Haburi said, "Make yourselves at home. If you'll excuse me." Ryu and Haburi then walked off to the Hokage's building alone.

Finally inside, Ryu got straight to business. "An apprentice? Another one?"

"I don't care what you think of him Ryu. I have faith in him. He has much more potential than you think." Haburi said.

"Old man, I don't think you should continue this. We are in dangerous times right now. You never know what could happen." Ryu said.

"He's been with us for three years, and he has not shown any sign of treachery." Haburi said.

"How can you be Hokage and a sensei at the same time? You have to be careful!"

"Don't worry about me. Just take my word on this." Haburi said attempting to reassure Ryu.

"No. I don't like him, when I looked into his eyes, I saw something. I just don't know what it was. But it wasn't good. He's hiding something…" Ryu said crossing his arms.

"I would've found it out by now if he was." Haburi argued. "He's a good boy. A strong one too. He's twelve and already a Jounnin."

"At that age I was already ANBU." Ryu said.

"Don't trouble yourself over this. I want to know how you have been. It's been so long." Haburi said.

"It has…"

"Speaking of dangerous times, have you ever had to use…" Haburi trailed off because Ryu already knew what he was talking about.

Ryu bowed his head in shame. "Yes, yes I have. You will be disappointed in me for hearing this. But it was against Ketsu."

"What?" Haburi shouted totally caught by surprise.

We were training, all three of us. It was Ketsu and Kyozoku against me. Just when Kyozoku hid somewhere in the trees, Ketsu and me went at it, both trying really hard to beat each other. I guess I got carried away, and I…I used the move."

"How is he alive?" Haburi asked.

"He used his ultimate defense along with the total aid of Kyozoku. He survived with two holes in his chest. I never used that move other than that time. But I can assure you that I'm better now. I've trained myself. I won't get carried away ever again. I'll only use that move under specific circumstances." Ryu said.

Haburi sighed. "You're strong Ryu. Stronger than you realize. You're the one who has to be careful."

"Just how strong is that rock-ish arm of his? Exactly how powerful is he?" Ryu asked.

"Even though you were at a higher position, he is stronger than when you were his age. He is probably the last of his clan, the Amatari clan. In his clan, everybody has one of their arms like he does. It emits a light that can practically go through anything. They can also control where the light goes. I don't believe he's old enough to use it. But I do know this: His clan is gone for a reason. About fifteen years ago, they were all killed because they were using their powers and revolting against different villages. They would travel many places, and leave destruction wherever they went. Finally, the Mizukage, Hokage, and Tsuchikage got together. They had all been affected by this clan. They came to a conclusion: This clan was too much of a danger to be kept alive. They had to be taken out. So a few elite members from each main village were selected to go and assassinate the whole clan. There must have been survivors. But if he's the last of their clan, then he can't really do much." Haburi said.

"How do you know all this?" Ryu asked.

"Because, I was one of the few selected from Konoha to go and assassinate them." Haburi said in shame. "Even though there were many of us from each village, they put up a huge fight. So much power, there was death everywhere that day. Look Ryu, you're just going to have to deal with this. Please…"

Ryu was silent for a moment. "I am completely against this, but…if it's ok with you, I'll let it pass."

Haburi smiled. "Now go with your friends. Enjoy your time here. How long will you be staying?"

"Not long. I just came to visit for a day. I wanted to congratulate you for making Hokage." Ryu said. "We'll be out of here tonight."

"What? Why don't you stay a night? I would be grateful if you stayed." Haburi said.

"I suppose I could convince Ketsu to stay a night. Although he won't sleep. He doesn't sleep much at all these days. Especially since I mentioned that we were going to Konoha. He's hated this place ever since…you know." Ryu said.

"Yes, a true tragedy." Haburi said.

"Well I'm going to go now." Ryu said as he left the Hokage building.

"Where's Saru?" Haburi asked himself.

Little did Haburi or Ryu know that Saru was closer than they thought…

---

"No. Absolutely not. I can't stay here Ryu. Please understand that. I lost a father here. This place is dead to me." Ketsu said shaking his head.

"I know, but please, just do it for me. You can't hold a grudge forever. Why do you blame Konoha? Was this village supposed to protect Jiraiya from dying?" Ryu argued.

"No…"

"Then why are you still like this? Let the past be the past, and let the future be the future. You can change the future, but the past is already done. Why not try to make the best of it?" Ryu asked.

"The past is what molds the future; MY past is what molds MY future. I choose not to come back to the village because it brings back my past. It's something that I can't escape. You said that the past is already done, meaning that I can't change what happened. That's why I can't stay in this village, because every second I'm in here, I'm reminded of that." Ketsu said heading for the door.

Ryu sighed. "Where are you going?"

"I won't be resting tonight. I'll be on the rooftop; I have some things to think about." Ketsu said.

"You need to get over it." Ryu said coldly.

Ketsu only shot Ryu an ice-cold, deathly stare and slammed the door behind him.

"Way to go Ryu. Ketsu's right. His past is what hurts the most. And this village makes him relive it. You are only making him feel worse. Why do you two always have to be fighting?" Kyozoku asked.

"He needs to learn to forgive and forget." Ryu said.

"Some don't heal as fast as others Ryu! Have you forgotten about Garou already?" Kyozoku asked.

"Of course not, but that is the past, we are the Tennoushihai now. We have to deal with that." Ryu said.

"You try to act tough, but you only make yourself look like an insecure fool. You did the wrong thing talking to Ketsu like that, admit it! I'll be outside with Ketsu." Kyozoku said angrily leaving the room.

Ryu sighed. Ever since Ketsu joined them, they had been having problems. But that didn't mean that they hated each other. They were like siblings. It was normal to fight. But this time, he might have gone too far. Bringing up Jiraiya was always a very sensitive subject to Ketsu. But now coming back to relive his past, it must've hurt. Ryu didn't help with his cold talk with Ketsu. Kyozoku was right, he needed to apologize.

He headed for the rooftop, finding Kyozoku closely huddled together with Ketsu. When Kyozoku saw Ryu, she decided it was time to take her leave. He headed inside to get some sleep, patting Ryu's back on her way back.

Ryu slowly made his way beside Ketsu. He sat down close to him, but not as close as Kyozoku sat.

They both sat there in total silence, leaving everything unspoken silently listening to the cool breeze in the atmosphere. Ryu was the first to speak.

"I made a mistake. I shouldn't have said what I said, and I'm deeply sorry for having done that."

Ketsu didn't look at Ryu, but stayed the way he was, staring into the moonlight. "What's done is done. You can't change what you said."

"I came up here to ask for your forgiveness. I went too far. I know that this village brings back painful memories for you. But I didn't understand. I remember how it was when we lost Garou. I was practically in denial for weeks remember? I hated you. I couldn't accept you. I resented Kyozoku for accepting you so easily. But I know it was hard for her too. But finally, I was able to put Garou's death behind me. Only after that, was I able to call us three the Tennoushihai. I am still sad to this very day of what happened to him. But life goes on, and so must we." Garou paused for a moment waiting for a reaction from Ketsu but received nothing. "Life is a fragile thing; it can be given in one second, and taken the next. That's why we have to be prepared for everything, the good and the bad. You can't let your past get the best of you. I know it's not easy, but that's why we have to try."

Ketsu was still silent. He finally spoke after a few minutes of complete silence. "Apology accepted. I'm also sorry for the way I've been. All this time, I've been blinded by my past."

"But we always come out on top don't we?" Garou said smiling as Ketsu smiled back. He then stood up. "Come on, let's get some sleep."

"I'll come down later, I'm not ready yet." Ketsu said softly.

Garou nodded and headed back inside leaving Ketsu by himself in the moonlight.

After finally about a few hours into the night, Ketsu stood up and went inside to sleep. It had begun to rain, so he hurried to enter. He finally was able to make peace with the village, and put the past behind him. Jiraiya was dead, but that's why he remained alive.

There was one other man when Ketsu fought Sora. He would find him, and kill him.

---

Saru dashed from tree to tree, speeding up with each passing second. He was not allowed to leave the village alone, but he had been doing it for weeks already. He would use all the time he could to kill any animal he could find, gaining a piece of his memory back. The process was painful, but he needed to know. He wanted to know where he belonged. His total perspective on life was changed with this day.

He could not believe that Haburi had killed his clan members. The idea was so painful that Saru did not want to think about it. But he couldn't stop. Fifteen years ago, he wasn't born yet. So his mother must have survived and gave birth to him three years later. The question was where was she? If she had survived, then there must have been others. Where was his father? Saru then went back to the memories that he had gained over time.

---

"That's not how you do it." A boy laughed pointing at Saru practicing punches out in a field.

The boy was much older than Saru, probably twice his age. He had brown hair and dark blue eyes, just like Saru did.

Saru then threw a small fit shouting, "Well why don't you show me how to do it then?"

"Because sometimes you have to learn on your own." The boy said with a big smile on his face.

"I hate it when you say that!" Saru said frowning crossing his arms.

"Learn to deal with it. When you get it right, then I'll stop saying it. Practice makes perfect Saru. So practice." The boy said patting Saru on the head.

---

Saru had gained much more of his memories over the years. They showed of the next few weeks, finally leaving off at an intense point.

---

Saru sneakily followed the older boy one day, only to find out that the older boy had met up with two suspicious people.

They were both men, one standing taller than the other. They both wore large black cloaks that covered everything, including their faces.

"You have proved that you are strong." The taller man said.

"So does that mean I'm in?" The older boy asked with a hint of hope on his face.

"Not quite." The shorter man said. "You may be strong, but we do not know your level of loyalty. To kill a random person, that takes guts. But to kill someone close to you, that will secure your place with us."

"Do you have anyone in mind? Name a person, and the deal is done." The older boy said.

Both cloaked men were silent for a moment. Then the shorter man whispered something brief in the older boy's ear. The older boy seemed to be very sad from what he was told, but he simply said, "Very well. I'll do it. It'll be taken care of. Meet me here tomorrow at nightfall."

They both nodded and they parted. Saru ran back to the house before he was caught by the older boy.

The next day, the older boy seemed to be very down. Saru went up to him and asked, "What's wrong?"

The older boy then said, "Nothing. Listen to me, if anything were to happen to mom, dad, and me, you would be on your own. You would have to take care of yourself. Do you understand that?"

Saru merely nodded thinking nothing of what was really said.

The older boy then got up and left the room.

---

That was where the memory had ended for Saru. He felt as if he was so close. Finally, Saru got to the training grounds that he always went to for all the time he had spent in Konoha. He spent the rest of the night killing as many animals as possible to regain as much memory as he could. He hardly gained anything and headed back to Konoha before dawn disappointed.

At this rate, it would take months to get the information he needed. He needed to kill something bigger. He needed to kill something…human. The mere thought of it made Saru shiver. If he was going to do it, it had to be soon. He could not wait. He knew he was strong, but he had never gone at anybody with intent to kill. He could not wait, he had to do this. It was either now or never. The question was who? If he did not kill someone strong, then he might not get all the memory he needed. He needed to target somebody extremely strong, but somebody he could take. Also, after having done this deed, he would have to leave Konoha, for good. They would be looking for him, but he needed this information. He did not have any patience in the matter. After finally having arrived at Konoha, he had made his decision. He was going to kill Rikou Haburi.

It was only fair; Haburi killed all of Saru's clan. He had the right to take Haburi's life. He didn't know if he could kill his sensei, but he was definitely willing to try. So many thoughts rushed through Saru's mind as he entered the village. His heart raced faster with every step he took that brought him closer to Haburi. He had to do this. There was no turning back now.

Finally Saru was in Haburi's bedroom, watching Haburi sleep peacefully in his bed.

"HABURI! GET OUT OF YOUR BED AND FIGHT ME!" Saru screamed whipping out a kunai.

Haburi got up right away and turned on the light. "Saru? What are you doing here? This is no time to train. Go back to sleep."

"This isn't training. I'm going to kill you here. You will die right here in your bedroom. Tonight is the night that Rikou Haburi was killed by Amatari Saru!"

"What are you talking about Saru?" Haburi asked standing up cautiously.

"After I kill you, I will leave this place. I'm not lying. I'm ready to kill you right now." Saru said.

A small tear dropped from Haburi's left eye as he spoke. "Saru, I can't believe this. Why?"

"Because you killed my clan! And because of you, I have nothing left! NOTHING!"

Haburi bowed his head in shame. "My own apprentice came to visit me in the middle of the night, to kill me." He said sadly.

Saru stood silent there holding the kunai in his hand. But after a few moments he spoke once more. "Old man, I respect you, not as a friend, not as a sensei, but as a father. But nothing can stop me from doing this. I have to find out."

"Find out what Saru? What have you been hiding from me all these years?" Haburi asked.

"Every time I kill something, I regain a piece of my memory back. So that's what I've been doing all these years, killing. But the bigger the animal, the bigger the memory I received. That's why I'm here now. I can't wait any longer. Old age has finally dawned upon you. You are not as strong as you were when I first met you. After about a year and a half, I began to realize this. So I held back on all our training. With Kimotsu as well. If I do this, then I'll figure out what I need to do. There are survivors of my clan. My brother, mother, and father. Killing you will give me exactly what I need. I'll have enough to find him."

"What if it's not enough?" Haburi asked. Haburi's voice sounded a little raspy.

"Then I will have to continue. Not in Konoha, but anywhere I go. I will not stop until I have everything I need." Saru said. "So get ready Old man, because the time for talk is over."

"Saru, even though shinobi may be devastated sometimes, they have to continue. If you are serious about this, and come at me with a real intent to kill, then I will have to do the same. It grieves me greatly that I did not get to teach you all I know. But that may be my key to survival. But know the risk you are taking by attempting to kill me. You will either be killed, or be chased down for the rest of your life. Is that what you want?" Haburi asked.

"No, I want a life with my clan. I believe that there is still hope for us yet. I will do all I can with all my power and strength. Obstacles that get in my way will be overcome. And right now, you're an obstacle. As I said before, I think of you as a father, so notice how determined I am. Rikou Haburi, tonight you will die, know that I will miss you forever." Saru said. With that, he charged.

But before reaching halfway to Haburi, the room suddenly changed. Sharp spears made of bamboo shot up from the ground attempting to stab Saru from below. Saru was able to dodge the fifty that came at him, leaving all the bamboo spears stuck halfway through the ceiling. Saru looked around to find Haburi, but he was nowhere to be found.

Saru didn't have much time to react to Haburi's disappearance because right after that one of the four walls exploded. Amazingly, Boiling water rushed in about to engulf Saru.

Saru performed a few hand seals quickly and shouted as he put his hands out in front of him, "Kakuheki no Jutsu!" Suddenly, a wall made of freezing ice appeared stopping the boiling water completely. The ice wall reached from one side of the room to the other, not allowing even a single drop of water pass. But the problem was, the ice wall was melting.

However, Saru didn't create a wall made of ice for nothing. He then concentrated a certain amount of chakra in his right hand which was an open palm. With that, he struck the ice wall sending it forward pushing the water out of the room before it melted.

Saru then took his kunai and cut his arm vertically allowing a large amount of blood to spill from his veins. He quickly formed a few hand seals with his good arm and placed it on the cut shouting, "Kaji no Jutsu!" The cut disappeared completely as if it were never there.

Saru then jumped forward dodging the attempted stab Haburi did from behind Saru.

"I'm surprised you managed to survive my Genjutsu and get out of the trance fast enough to dodge my attack." Haburi said as Saru faced him. "But you still have much to learn."

Just then Saru widened his eyes as he felt a kunai go into his back from behind him. He slowly turned around to see a second Haburi there. "…smart…" Saru said as he fell down to the ground.

_Poof_! The Saru disappeared leaving the two Haburi's completely alone in the room.

BOOM! Saru crashed through one of the walls from outside with a side kick flying at Haburi. Saru took out the first Haburi that had stabbed him. _Poof_! It disappeared as Naruto flew through the smoke not losing momentum.

The real Haburi in the back of the room managed to dodge Saru's flying kick. But when Saru reached the wall, he pushed off it sending him back again. He attempted to punch Haburi while in the air, but it was a dumb idea. Haburi caught the punch and threw Saru out from where the boy had come. He followed after leading the battle outside the room.

Saru landed on his feet on a rooftop somewhere in the village. He almost slipped from all the rain that was going on. It was pouring heavily, already soaking Saru as if he had been out there for hours when he was only out for a few seconds.

Haburi was out right behind him, landing on the same rooftop Saru was on. "How do you plan on finding your family?" Haburi screamed over the downpour.

"That doesn't concern you!" Saru screamed back. He charged once again, this time using Taijutsu. He tried to kick Haburi on the top of the head bringing his leg down, but it was easily blocked. So while in the air, Saru swung his other leg around trying to kick Haburi's face. Haburi stepped back quickly avoiding the fast kick. He then jumped even farther back, all the way to another rooftop.

"You're serious about this aren't you?" Haburi asked once again very loudly.

Saru didn't say anything; he only nodded slightly with a look of determination on his face. "I have to TaiGen."

"That's the first time you've ever called me that." Haburi said smiling a bit.

"That will also be the last!" Saru screamed jumping across rushing at Haburi. This time, Saru dashed past him, throwing his kunai backwards to Haburi. Haburi turned to block it, but another Saru came from below while Haburi was distracted and landed an uppercut on him sending him flying several feet high into the air.

Suddenly, Haburi was in a room that had no windows and no doors. But it wasn't dark yet there wasn't any light. It was a completely empty room, with blood red walls.

"Genjutsu won't work on me Saru!" Haburi screamed punching himself in the stomach to get out of it. But he remained in the room. Then he tried the same strategy Saru had used cutting his arm and healing it. But it still did not get him out. Just then, the blood red walls began to close in on Haburi quickly.

"How can this be?" Haburi asked out loud. "How can you know such a powerful Genjutsu? I have not taught you at this level before!"

Saru's voice then came out of nowhere saying, "I told you that I have been holding back."

Right before the walls closed in to crush Haburi's body, he shouted, "Hizumi no Jutsu!"

Haburi looked around. He was exactly where he wanted to be. He was on the tallest building of Konoha, now looking down at Saru who was very far from him looking around.

Saru finally spotted Haburi and disappeared and was facing Haburi in less than a second.

"That's some speed Saru. I remember when you couldn't even outrun my old bones." Haburi said smiling once more.

"Yes, but I'm much past that now." Saru said. "How did you do that?"

"To be honest, I didn't even know if it would work. But I'm glad it did. Apparently, that level of Genjutsu is still new to you. To have a Genjutsu that strong, you must first have a lot of chakra. Secondly, for beginners at that level, you can only use it when in contact with the opponent. That's why I used a trusty Jutsu of mine to warp away from you and onto here, breaking away the contact. That uppercut was when you triggered the Genjutsu. That was very impressive Saru." Haburi said.

"Don't compliment me! I'm trying to kill you! Do you think this is some kind of game?" Saru asked screaming at the top of his lungs. "You don't think this is hard for me? Trying to kill your own father is pretty hard to do you know! Why can't you just fight back with all you've got so I can do it easier? Why do you have to go back to all these things and smile?"

"Nobody said that killing would be easy Saru. But I understand where you're coming from. There are other alternatives! You can find your clan some other way. Allow me to help you! I swear that I will use everything in my power to help you find them once again! Killing is not the answer Saru. You must realize that." Haburi shouted.

"NO! It's too late for me to turn back now! I must go through with this, I must kill you! Or be killed by you! I can't stand this anymore!" Saru was enraged that after all he had said and done to Haburi he was still willing to help him. He couldn't control his temper, screaming demonically at the top of his lungs.

Suddenly, Saru's rock arm emitted a small ball of light that floated in the palm of his hand. Saru stopped screaming to stare at the tiny glow. He then looked at Haburi who now had a face of fear. He then remembered Haburi saying something about the ball of light going through practically anything. He decided to test it out.

Saru found out that he was able to control the ball of light with some difficulty. But it would move where he wanted it to move. After playing around a little, he sent it straight for the building he was standing on.

The ball of light touched the rooftop and the whole building exploded, forcing Saru and Haburi to move to a different rooftop.

Saru was shaking from the fear and excitement he was feeling. He felt power surging through his veins. He then created another ball of light, but he then directed it toward his opponent, Rikou Haburi.

Haburi ran for his life, but Saru was right in the end, old age had caught up. After a few minutes of running, Haburi was incinerated at that moment, ending his life. The battle was over. Saru then fell to his knees in pain clutching his head as a large piece of memory came to him.

---

That same night, Saru was out playing in the grass, later than usual. When he felt tired and dirty, he decided to head home. It was already nightfall, the time the two men and the boy decided to meet.

Saru headed home but when he arrived, he did not find the boy anywhere. He then headed to his parents room, to find something he never would've have imagined.

Saru's mother lay dead on the floor, her throat completely ripped out from her body. She lay in her own pool of blood. Saru watched as a small ball of light appeared from the boy's rock arm and went into Saru's father, blowing him up to pieces.

"Sora!" Saru screamed referring to the boy who had killed Saru's parents. "Why? Why did you have to kill mommy and daddy?" Saru asked with tears in his eyes.

The boy named Sora walked over to Saru and crouched down. "It was a test of faith Saru, and I passed it. When you are older, I want you to look for me. Understand Saru, that we are the future, we are the strong, not them. I'm leaving you here by yourself. I know this may hurt, but you'll understand one day. Power is more than it seems…" With that, Sora left the house with the two cloaked men.

---

That was the end of the memory. The pain was gone, leaving Saru laying in the rain on a rooftop. He stood up looking around. He could never return. He had acquired what he needed. He would look for his brother. He didn't know what to think of it. He wanted to restore his clan, but Sora wanted to destroy it. He would have to figure everything out once they met. Saru decided to start looking for his older brother at the very beginning. He would head to his old house.

Saru left the village in the middle of the pouring night, with no adults, and this time for good.

A/N: guys, please review, I love to read the comments on my story. Flames are accepted. Please give me any ideas that you have or anything. I really need to know how I am doing. Please tell me if I'm doing ok. Thank you


	16. Shattered Remains of a Family Once Been

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Chapter Sixteen: Shattered Remains of a Family Once Been

"Amazing Naruto…" Kisame said panting. "You have managed to beat me and Zetsu in a two on one battle. "You are beyond our level now. Probably the strongest Akatsuki member there is."

Naruto smiled. He was extremely exhausted, but he did not show it. He only looked pretty beat up, but not tired. "I'm just glad to be back Kisame-san. By the way, where is Mihniopaksu and Itachi-san?"

"They'll be back shortly." Zetsu said sitting down on a small boulder also gasping for air. "They have been training Hinata. She has grown very strong as well Naruto. She has more potential than even you. Our side of the Akatsuki has never been stronger."

A few hours later, Hinata, Itachi, and Mihniopaksu did come back. But Itachi didn't seem to be happy to see Naruto at all. After having greeted everybody but Itachi, Naruto followed him inside the base.

"Itachi-san, what's wrong?" Naruto asked.

"You failed your training Naruto." Itachi said coldly.

"How?" Naruto asked a little angered.

"You cheated. We did strictly tell you not to use your demon powers while on the island. So why did you do it?" Itachi asked.

"Itachi, I was dying! Would you rather have left me there to die even before I could complete anything?"

Itachi was silent and avoided eye contact.

"You've changed Itachi." Naruto said shaking his head.

"No Naruto, I haven't changed. The only thing that has changed is you. You became a man, so start acting like one. I now treat you with respect. I believe you can look after yourself now, I will not baby sit you any longer." Itachi said walking away from Naruto.

"So that's what it was?" Naruto asked extremely irritated. "All this time with me and you thought you were baby-sitting? You're nothing but a power hungry piece of worthless trash."

Itachi whirled around without warning, swinging his powerful fist at Naruto's face.

Bam! Naruto's arm was right there to block it. "You're right," Naruto said. "I'm not a kid anymore, so don't take me for one. If you can't deal with my words, then do something about it. But keep in mind that you're not the only one out here Itachi. I'm stronger than you now." With that, Naruto turned his back to Itachi and headed for outside the base. "I used to look up to you Itachi, but all this time, I'm surprised I couldn't see past your mask. I never realized how filthy you really were…"

"You would be mindful to watch your tongue. It seems your mouth has grown as well. A big mouth will get you killed in this world, remember that." Itachi said as Naruto left the base.

"Kisame, why is Itachi-san being like this now?" Naruto asked Kisame when he had met up with him.

Kisame sighed. "Naruto, you weren't supposed to use your demon powers. I know that you had no other choice, but you were too careless. Itachi seems more cold-hearted because he respects you as an Akatsuki member. As one of us, not a child that still needs to be trained. He looks at you as his equal. It may seem harsh at first. But then he'll settle down. There will be no punishment for using your demon powers. We've already talked and decided to give you a mission instead."

"A mission already? What kind of mission?" Naruto asked frowning slightly.

"A dangerous one. Definitely S ranked. There is a shinobi interfering with our plans. She must be taken care of." Kisame said.

Naruto's eyes widened with surprise. "She? Are you sure this is an S rank mission?"

"Yes. She is much stronger than you know. Do not underestimate her. We will send you and Hinata. Hinata will be there for support incase you need it. But other than that, she won't get in your way. Remember Naruto, this lady may say anything to try and get you to lower your guard down. Don't let it happen, she will kill you at any costs."

"What's her name?" Naruto asked.

"That is unknown. There is not much data that we have on her. Simply that she may cause all of our plans to crumble and fall apart. She must be taken care of within the next forty-eight hours. You can locate her moving from village to village, trying to find places to sleep where she can. She was last seen in the Bird Country. Locate her and assassinate her quickly. Your mission starts today. Whenever you're ready to go." Kisame said.

"I'm ready now." Naruto said.

"Aren't you exhausted from the fight we just had?" Kisame asked.

"I'm not a little kid anymore, don't act like that. A mission is a mission, if it starts now, then now is when I'll go. Hinata, let's head out." Naruto said.

With that they were off, dashing through the forest quickly, not knowing what lay ahead for them.

---

"Naomi! Get out of here!" A tall black-haired man shouted as he lay on the floor with a hole through his body. The man was unable to move anywhere.

The woman called Naomi was blonde with blue eyes, she stood pretty tall, but shorter than most men. She looked horrified as Hinata came and beheaded her teammate that had cried out to her.

Hinata didn't grow much since Naruto had last seen her. But she did grow in strength. She wore a tight dark blue outfit that fit her nicely. She also carried a sharp sword in its sheath around. She didn't have anywhere to hang it, so she just carried it in her hand. But now the sword was out of the sheath as she cleaned the blood off of it by stabbing the ground.

The woman named Naomi seemed to be frozen with fear. "Is this the woman?" Naruto asked Hinata.

Hinata nodded. "Yes, we've been spying on her for some time. This is her. But remember, don't let her fool you Naruto, be careful.

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHH!" A muscular man then jumped out from the woods clutching his stomach in pain as he let the blood fall from his abdomen. He had his hand stretched out, aiming for Naruto. In his hand was a blue aura surrounding his whole arm. But Seconds before the man could even touch Naruto; Hinata whirled around and stabbed her sword through the man's forehead. She quickly pulled it out and cleaned her sword once again as the man fell down to the ground lifeless. Naruto was pretty beat up from his previous fight with the muscular man.

The woman only stood there in horror again. She stared straight at Naruto who was now walking towards her. "Your name seems to be Naomi, so listen up. Today, you will die Naomi; any resistance will not be taken lightly. If you allow your death to come easily, then I will make it quick. I don't believe in painful deaths. But if you try to stop us, then I will do anything and everything within my power to take you down."

"Naruto!" Hinata shouted. "Don't talk, just get this over with!" At that sentence, Naomi flinched; tears began to fall from her face.

Naomi then smiled, wiping her tears from her dirty face. "It's been such a long time…"

Naruto paid no attention to what she said but kept on walking.

"I can't let you just take my life like that. I still have things to do. I don't want to kill you, but if you attack, I will have no choice. Don't think that because you are young that I will spare you." Naomi said threateningly.

Naruto smirked and then jumped in the air disappearing. BAMBAMBAM! All of a sudden, three large trees were broken into pieces. Every single shard of tree trunk became as sharp as a spear. They were all heading towards Naomi with extreme speed.

"Toumeitai no Jutsu!" Naomi shouted forming many hand seals so quickly that it seemed like she had only formed one. The spears came fast, but they didn't hit the target. Naomi just stood there as the spears of wood passed right through her body. Naomi was now a bit clear and transparent. As if she was a ghost.

She quickly returned to normal after Naruto had shown himself in front of her. "Impressive." He said with a smile.

---

It all began as Naruto and Hinata rushed through the forest heading towards the bird country. They didn't have to travel very far because soon enough, they felt a presence of three powerful shinobi. It was not long until they had caught up to the place where the shinobi were. They were huddled looking at something together. Naruto and Hinata were right above them, spying for a short time.

Naruto looked at Hinata as he pulled out a kunai with an exploding tag on it. Hinata nodded as she prepared her sword in its sheath. Naruto threw it down landing on whatever the three shinobi were examining and exploded. But unfortunately, the explosion didn't cause any harm to any of them. It simply caused each of them to dash through the forest in different directions. But that was the plan.

Naruto chased after the most muscular man in the group. Hinata chose to pursue a dark man with black hair.

The muscular man wasn't too fast, so Naruto had quickly caught up to him. He appeared directly in front of the man stopping him in his tracks.

"I have no time for introductions, nor do I need to explain anything to you. Prepare yourself!" Naruto said coldly. If the muscular man was frightened, then he did a good job of not showing it. He only formed many hand seals shouting, "Kyodai no Jutsu!" In just a matter of seconds, the muscular man grew almost three times in size. His muscles bulged out as if they were going to explode. The coat the muscular man was wearing quickly ripped off revealing a very tight and flexible suit that the man was wearing underneath.

Naruto disappeared and reappeared behind the man's head high in the air. Naruto whirled around swinging his right leg to the man's ear. It struck, but did not damage to the muscular man, in fact, it didn't even budge him. Naruto felt as if he had just kicked a rock, but he could have easily destroyed a boulder with that force. The man turned around and punched Naruto through many trees. Naruto disappeared while going through all of them and reappeared in front of the man confronting him face to stomach.

The man rushed at Naruto attempting to punch his tiny body. Naruto jumped up and climbed up the man's humongous arm and gave another kick to his head and two punches as well. Naruto jumped off the man and out of range before the man could hit him back. Still nothing, the man didn't seem to be affected at all by Naruto's Taijutsu attacks.

Naruto then jumped up way into the air, all the way high up into the trees. He threw hundreds of needles down shouting, "Fukibari no Jutsu!" Suddenly, Naruto had control of every single needle he threw down. He was controlling them with chakra. He directed them all to surround the muscular man and then clash with his body.

They did that exact thing, but the needles all fell dead to the floor as they hit the man. Again, no affect.

Before Naruto could even think of anything else to do, the muscular man took his turn shouting, "Nagewaza kobushi!" The man punched up into the air at Naruto's general direction. The man was not nearly tall enough to reach Naruto, but his technique was. Suddenly, a slightly transparent fist flew at Naruto with an intense speed. Naruto had no time to dodge, the only option left was to block. Naruto put out his arms in front of him.

BOOM! The fist hit Naruto and sent him flying so far up into the air, that he could see the whole forest that he was just in. The man suddenly appeared way above him, shouting the same technique as he punched downwards to Naruto again. However, this time, it was two punches and not one. Naruto was brought quickly to the ground with immense force by the first fist, and was at the bottom of a newly formed crater by the second.

Naruto lay there in so much pain as the muscular man appeared beside his limp body. The man slowly bent over Naruto to lift him up. Naruto quickly drove his hand through the man's steel-hard stomach with all his force shouting, "KYUUIN NO JUTSU!"

Naruto's fist penetrated. The man looked at Naruto in sorrow. "Kyuuin is the ability to suck dry every single one of your organs and muscles. This process only takes about three seconds to completely kill the victim. But for you it might take ten. The man quickly pulled away after five seconds. The man clutched his side as he returned back to regular size which was still very muscular. He man lay there, bleeding from his stomach.

Naruto then got up slowly and painfully and went to go find the third shinobi.

---

Hinata stayed above the dark haired man the whole time he ran. He was no match for her speed. He finally stopped after Hinata jumped down and cut both of his ankle tendons. The man fell to the ground on his stomach screaming in pain.

The man turned around to face Hinata looking down on him. He had such a look of fear on his face. But a look of determination was in there as well. He used his hands to push himself back a few meters. Hinata slowly walked toward him with her sword out in her hand, the blade a little wet from the blood of the man's ankle tendons.

The man sat down forming hand seals after having bit his thumb. He hit the ground quickly with an open palm shouting, "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" Suddenly, about five small short monkeys with smooth, brown fur half the size of Hinata appeared. They didn't look harmless at all, but very cute. But Hinata didn't care if they were strong or not, they were going to die, along with the man sitting down leaving his fate in the hands of five short monkeys.

Hinata first rushed to the one closest to her bringing her sword above her head and then quickly down on the monkey's head. Something happened that she greatly did not expect. She looked in amazement as she saw that the monkey now had an exterior of not skin or fur, but metal even stronger than her sword.

She jumped back and watched as the metal monkey turned back to normal.

The man then spoke with a smile, "Those aren't just any monkeys, those are iron monkeys! They may be small, but they are fast, even when they have iron all around their bodies. Their punches can break any bone in your entire body. Can you deal with five of them?" The man then stood up back on his feet again.

"So you healed them huh?" Hinata said unsurprisingly. The man then pointed at Hinata as the five monkeys dashed towards her.

Hinata jumped up and attempted to slice the head of one monkey off, but it turned completely into metal before she could inflict any damage. She dodged many attacks from all five monkeys as they all turned into metal. The man was right, they were fast. But Hinata could manage. It seemed that her sword would not work at all against these monkeys, so she would have to try something different. When she saw an opening, she used it to jump high into the trees.

"It's no use!" The man shouted as the monkeys climbed after her. "Don't forget that they are monkeys after all."

Hinata then jumped down, flying past the monkeys as they followed right after. When they all landed, Hinata was about ten meters away from all five monkeys. She prepared her sword as they all came rushing at her in metal form. The first monkey to arrive jumped into the air attempting to punch Hinata's face. Hinata stepped back a bit and drove the point of her sword into the monkey's metal head shouting, "Bakuretsu no Jutsu!" The monkey's metal exterior blasted away like pudding as the sword penetrated the head causing it to explode.

The man gasped in horror as Hinata shouted the same words and using the same technique on each of the five monkeys killing them one by one. Finally, the man was left. Hinata walked towards the man with her sword prepared.

"I may not be able to turn like those monkeys on command, but I can still do it!" The man formed many hand seals quickly as he shouted, "Kabuseru no Jutsu!" Suddenly, he too was now completely covered in metal. "Don't think your little stabbing technique will work on me like it did on the mindless monkeys!"

The man began to run towards Hinata, gaining speed every step of the way. Hinata raised her sword high up into the air straight at the sky saying, "Shidenissen no Jutsu!" Suddenly, the sky grew dark over them. A lightning bolt struck from the sky straight onto the man covered in metal. The lightning strike stopped him on his path leaving him paralyzed.

Hinata then ran towards the man shouting, "Hitotachi no Jutsu!" She swung her sword at the man even though she was still too far away. But a ghost-like appearance of her sword appeared flying straight at the man who was standing still. The sword swung like a propeller hitting the man's side cracking the metal. Hinata swung again as a ghost of her sword flew at the man who was no damaged. She continued this process until she finally reached the man so that he was in range of her attack. By that time, the metal was cracked all over his body, ready to crumble even with a simple push to the ground.

Hinata ended it like she ended it for the monkeys. She stabbed his stomach, blowing a hole through his abdomen. The metal fell to pieces as he lay on his back barely alive. The third shinobi suddenly appeared with a look of shock on her face as she witnessed what had just happened to the dark-haired man. "Naomi! Get out of here!" He shouted.

Naruto appeared a few seconds after that as well leading up to the present moment.

---

Naruto could not stop smiling after having witnessed Naomi do that phantom Jutsu. His next attack was so sudden, that Naomi was not able to defend herself.

Naruto went from a smiling stand-still position to disappearing and reappearing next to Naomi spinning around kicking her face sending her whole body flying through the forest they were in.

Naomi did not destroy one single tree as she was flying from the force of Naruto's kick, she was in phantom mode. Naruto then appeared ahead of Naomi as she headed his direction. He put out his hands in front of him and made a few hand seals and shouted as Naomi came, "Shugo Ametsuchi!"

A black ball appeared around Naruto, a barrier, like the one he had created to protect Sasuke many years ago. Naomi came like a speeding bullet. With her transparent self, she passed into the barrier, but she came out as her normal self.

As Naomi stood up and looked at the large black ball she could barely hear Naruto's voice from inside shouting, "Release!"

At that exact moment, the black barrier exploded expanding too fast for anybody to react at all. Naomi was caught in the explosion which sent her flying farther into the forest. She skidded a long way across the ground when she finally landed.

Naruto then appeared right by her as she stood up quickly. He was still smiling. "You're phantom Jutsu didn't work this time did it?"

"How is that possible?" Naomi asked.

"Inside my barrier, neither Ninjutsu nor Genjutsu can be used. That's why you came out of the barrier in your simple form. Then I just made the barrier disappear by exploding. You were the only one harmed here. No matter what you try to defend yourself with, I'll always have a counterattack."

Naomi then charged at Naruto with a simple Kunai attempting to stab Naruto in the chest. Naruto did not budge whatsoever. He only shouted, "Toumeitai no Jutsu!" as he clapped his hands together turning into a phantom himself. Naomi's arm went directly though Naruto.

"What? How did you copy my ability?" Naomi asked confused once again.

"I don't need to explain myself to you." Naruto said a little aggravated. "It appears you are not the shinobi I though you were."

"I can't fight you!" Naomi shouted.

"I know, you can't, but it'll be over soon anyways." Naruto shouted. He then dashed through her until he was behind her and became normal whipping out a kunai slashing through her neck decapitating her.

The fight was over, or so Naruto thought. "Ha! Is that all you can do? You disappoint me Naruto!" Naomi's voice shouted coming from above him.

She sat down on a tree branch watching him as she smiled.

"So that was a Bunshin…" Naruto said out loud. "If the Bunshin was that strong, then how strong will the real one be?"

Naomi jumped down and ducked as Hinata came dashing over her attempting to slash her backside with her sword. "Don't think that you can simply kill me that easily." She said.

Hinata took a small step toward Naomi but stopped as Naruto said, "Don't Hinata. Remember what you're here for, support, but only if I need it. I don't. This is my fight."

Naomi smiled as Naruto slowly walked towards her. "That was a very poor decision. You are going to need more support than you know. Tajyuu Mizu Bunshin no Jutsu!" Suddenly there were so many Naomi's everywhere surrounding Naruto and Hinata.

Then the original Naomi shouted, "Bakuretsu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" Every single Bunshin ran toward Naruto and Hinata with their arms open as if they were going to give them a hug.

"Oh shoot!" Naruto shouted rushing to Hinata spinning around shouting, "SHUGO AMETSUCHI!" The black barrier appeared around them once again like it had done before.

Naomi smiled. "Not that again. If it didn't work last time, what makes you think it's going to last this time?" Each Bunshin can and exploded into water splashing on top of the black barrier of chakra. After the hundreds of bunshins had exploded, there was a second barrier surrounding Naruto's barrier which was made completely out of water.

"This isn't good!" Hinata said a little scared. "We could die Naruto! That was a stupid move of you! She has already got passed this before. Now we are trapped in this barrier!"

Naruto looked at Hinata and then swept her off her feet and dropped her flat on her back holding her body down from her neck choking her slightly. Naruto spoke calmly. "Don't ever show any sign of fear to your opponents, it's a sign of weakness. You will only be at an even larger disadvantage." He let go of her neck and helped her up as she coughed gasping for air.

"I'm sorry." She said. Naruto said nothing but simply kept looking around. "What are we going to do?"

"Shh." Naruto said.

Naomi smiled as she said, "Good-bye Naruto. Raiton Shidenissen no Jutsu."

A lightning bolt came and struck the water barrier magnifying the power of the electricity. Naruto's barrier crumbled before it as the water rushed in on them. Naruto and Hinata fell to the ground extremely exhausted and in pain soaking wet.

"So you're still alive?" Naomi asked laughing. "You are alive but barely."

Naruto gasped for air as he grasped his chest. Hinata laid stiff right next to him. He looked to his side to see his limp comrade. "…Hinata!" Naruto screamed as he sat straight up looking at the Hyugga.

"Hinata!" Naruto shouted as tears rolled down his face. He shook her body but nothing happened. He then looked at his opponent in fury saying through his gritted teeth, "You're dead. YOU'RE DEAD!"

He stood up but then fell back down in pain. Naomi laughed. "I warned you Naruto. I can't die yet. It seems you're not strong enough to beat me yet. And it seems you never will be after today."

"You're wrong." Hinata said as she opened her eyes and stood up holding her sword in her right hand and it's sheathe in her left.

"What? How are you unharmed?" Naomi asked confused.

_Poof_! Naruto's body disappeared and the real Naruto appeared behind Naomi pinning her down to the floor.

"Allow me to explain," Hinata said smiling. I use all kinds of elemental techniques with my sword. But that's not the only thing it can do, I can absorb those elemental techniques as well. Naruto was always behind you, only hiding extremely far away. The Bunshin summoned up the barrier putting us both there incase you would use any kind of elemental magic to destroy the barrier. That way, I could absorb whichever elemental attack you gave us, and nobody could be harmed. When Naruto said he wanted me to stay back, that was all an act. It's foolish to try and be hard-headed like that. It can get yourself killed, that's one of the first things we learned in our training. The only thing you managed to do, was get me wet, but in exchange, you are now pinned to the ground. Say goodbye Naomi."

Hinata walked over raising her sword over her head ready to decapitate Naomi. "Doton: Shinjuu Zanshu no Jutsu!" Naomi disappeared into the ground beneath them.

Naruto stood up since he didn't have Naomi pinned anymore looking around. "Be careful, she could be anywhere underground, she could even be in the trees."

"I can take care of the trees part." Hinata said swinging her sword low to the ground creating another ghost-like image of it as it flew cutting the trees down to the floor. She did this several times until Naruto and she were standing in an open space with all of the trees lying horizontally on the ground. "Katon: Yekedo no Jutsu!" All the trees suddenly disintegrated into ashes leaving them in a very large open field.

Naomi appeared a few meters away from Naruto and Hinata. She was kneeling close to her muscular comrade. She laid her hand on his head feeling the hole that Hinata had made with her sword. She was in tears as she said, "I know we made this promise, so I'm going to keep it. But I want you to know, that I won't let you all die in vein. I don't want to do this, but I can win with this. Sabaki no Jutsu…"

Just then, the muscular man was gone, in an instant, all of his remains, blood, and everything else disappeared. Naomi then went over to her other teammate and did the same. She stood up looking straight at her opponents. "Don't think that I will let you escape after what you have done."

"We weren't planning on running away." Naruto said as he and Hinata prepared to fight.

Naomi then clenched her fists tightly and raised her right arm up and struck the ground with all her might. Creating a crater where the forest used to be. The ground beneath Hinata and Naruto crumbled as the fell down to the very middle of the humongous crater. Before they could hit the ground, Naomi appeared under them catching them shouting, "KUSARI NO JUTSU!" As she held them both tightly close to her, a very large chain appeared out of nowhere and surrounded the three tightly together going around and around each time tightening the hold it had on them. Soon enough, none of them could breathe as they were all chained up together.

"I definitely had other plans, but I don't think I can complete them anymore." Naomi said softly. "If I'm going to go, you all will go with me as well. I've created this crater because that's how big the explosion will be, that way we won't harm anyone else. I won't let you two harm this earth any longer! Katon: Souja Sousai no Jutsu."

"Don't be crazy!" Naruto said gasping for air. "Suicide just to take us out! You coward!"

"Call me a coward, but you both will die right here and right now. In a few seconds it will be over. You look so much like your father Naruto…" Naomi said.

"What? How do you know about my father?" Naruto asked.

Hinata was next to speak. "We will not allow ourselves to die under this Jutsu! Your death as well as your comrades' deaths were all in vein. Goodbye, Uzumaki Naomi."

"What? Uzumaki?" Naruto asked. But he couldn't do or say anything else. Hinata cut the large chains with brute force and grabbed Naruto leaving the crater just in time to escape the large explosion. Naomi was gone.

---

"So I see you didn't know until now, well, I guess you didn't know that you both are two of the last three Uzumaki family members there are on this earth. The rest are dead." Sora said as he rested his foot on top of Ketsu's head.

---

All this time, he had no idea, no idea that Naomi, Uzumaki Naomi, was his mother. He had killed his own mother. Naruto fell to his knees covering his face as he cried out loud screaming. Hinata was there right next to him patting him on the back trying to sooth him.

Naruto cried for a few minutes, but then stopped as he realized something. "Hinata?"

"Yes Naruto?" Hinata asked still patting him on the back. "You said, that u didn't know her name. But in fact, all this time, you knew that she was my mother didn't you?" Naruto then stood up and backed away from Hinata a little with tears in his eyes.

"Naruto…try to understand." Hinata said.

"TRY TO UNDERSTAND WHAT? YOU WANT ME TO UNDERSTAND WHY YOU LET ME KILL MY OWN MOTHER? WHAT KIND OF SICK PERSON ARE YOU?" Naruto screamed in anger.

"Naruto! They told me not to tell you! I wanted to so much, but I couldn't! They said that it would affect your judgment, and she was a deep threat to our clan. We couldn't have her alive, and that's why they didn't tell you. If they did, you wouldn't have killed her! You would have failed yet another mission. And now it's done, and I'm glad that I didn't tell you. You may be hurt now, but you did a great job. She could have ruined us completely, and now she is gone. We won't have to worry about her anymore." Hinata said.

"You're glad? You're glad that I lost my own mother?" You don't understand Hinata! There were only three of us left! My brother, my mother, and me! I've grown up wondering all my life, never knowing about my heritage. And just when I get close, she's gone, just like that…." Naruto explained.

"Well then hang on to what you have! You still have something Naruto, a brother! Look at me; I don't have anything at all! I didn't know anything, all I know is that I suddenly woke up and I'm some kind of weapon, some kind of tool that can start wars. How do you think I feel? But I keep on living. I keep on living for the only family I know, the Akatsuki. I will gladly give my life for them, they would do the same." Hinata said bringing herself to tears just like Naruto.

"They protect you with their lives only because you have some kind of untouched potential that leads to great power! If you didn't have that, then you wouldn't be here!" Naruto said harshly.

Hinata looked at Naruto in disgust. "So what? Even if I am just being used, they still protect me, and I'm thankful for that. I'm thankful for what I have, even though it's not much. I never asked for this life, I've always wished to be normal, that's all I knew when I woke up. But you know what? I'm not normal. But I hold on to the little I have because there's nothing else for me. I accept who I am. Why can't you? You have much more than me, yet you are still complaining. Why? Why are you so selfish?" Hinata asked.

"You wouldn't know how I feel Hinata! You don't even have a true family to begin with, and-" Naruto stopped in mid-sentence realizing what he had just said.

Hinata only cried even more, holding her sword and sheath very tightly in her hands. "I'm not going to deal with this. Let's go back; we've got to give them a full report. Come on."

Hinata walked by Naruto and grabbed his arm. He pulled away quickly screaming, "Don't touch me! You can never understand what I'm feeling right now! I can't go back, not after this! I can't believe they would use me like this, I can't believe that they would use US like this. I don't belong with them Hinata. I can't go back, I WON'T GO BACK!"

"Then where are you going to go?" Hinata asked shouting angrily.

"I don't know! Anywhere but back, I'm going away from here. I don't think I will be coming back…Good bye Hinata." Naruto said taking steps away from his former comrade.

"You know, when I first saw you, you stood up for me, fighting Sasori just so he would stay away from me. I saw a certain light in you, that light gave me hope when you were gone away on your training. Hope that you would come back and we could be together like a family. Now, that light is gone. I'm starting to realize the kind of person you are; an ungrateful shinobi with mixed feelings who doesn't know his place. Where is your loyalty to the people that have cared for you since you were a baby?" Hinata asked.

"It's gone." Naruto said, still facing away from her. "It's gone along with the light you once saw to me. I am only loyal to myself, and my brother. He's the only thing I have left. He's the thread I hang onto in this miserable life."

"We believe in completely different things Naruto. I don't know if I can ever see you the same way again…" Hinata said sadly. "Maybe it would be better for everyone if you didn't come back."

Naruto said nothing but only disappeared in the distance running in the opposite direction of their base. Hinata headed back to inform her "family" of the incidents that had taken place.

A/N: hey guys, sorry that it took so long to come out with this chapter, I just needed a little inspiration to write it. I found it, and I'm back on track. Please review. From here on, the plot of this story will soon be revealed bit by bit. We're getting deeper into the story with every chapter. Just once again, please review, I really need to know how I am doing. Even if you don't usually review, please do, your reviews are my inspiration.


	17. Initiation

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Chapter Seventeen: Initiation

"Are you sure you don't want to stay any longer?" An elder asked Ryu, Kyozoku, and Ketsu as they were about to head out of the village.

"We have stayed for the funeral out of respect for him. But I don't think I can bear this any longer." Ryu said sadly.

"What are you planning to do?" The elder man asked.

"I'm going to find him, and make him regret what he's done…" Ryu said coldly. With that, the Tennoushihai left the village of Konoha dashing deep into the forest.

A few hours later, Ketsu suddenly stopped and looked at his two comrades in pure sadness.

"Ketsu, what's wrong?" Kyozoku asked him.

"I know that we are the Tennoushihai, and I know that no matter how long I stay, I can never replace Garou. I planned on staying longer, but this must be the end of our journey together…" Ketsu said softly.

"What?" Ryu asked completely surprised. "We've all stuck together for practically three years now. We're like a family, and you want to leave us just like that?"

Ketsu stayed silent for a moment, but then said, "Going back to Konoha really got me thinking. Especially that night when we were in a fight. I thought to myself, 'What have I been doing all these years?' and the answer was simple. I said, 'training.' But then I realized that that was not the case."

"Then what have you been doing with us all these years?" Ryu asked a bit irritated.

"I've spent three years of my life, subconsciously trying to avoid what I've wanted all this time, revenge. Three years later, and nothing has happened, I haven't done anything at all." Ketsu said.

"You've been training with us, to get stronger! How can you call that nothing?" Kyozoku shouted.

"When I'm with you guys, I feel as if I could take my time, and get this all done sooner or later. But when I went back to Konoha, I realized that all I was doing was making excuses for me. That's why I have to leave you now. A family you say? Yes definitely. But I have to decide, because I can't waste my life traveling around from place to place. I've desired for revenge for so long, yet I haven't done anything to get it. It's time I took action, and I just can't do that when I'm with you." Ketsu said.

"So that's what we are huh? A distraction, an obstacle in you path to revenge?" Ryu asked. "Let me tell you one thing Ketsu. If you walk out on us now, then there won't ever be a place for you here, do you understand that?"

"Ryu-" Kyozoku said. But she was interrupted.

"No! If we're family, then he won't do this to us. He says he has to make a decision, it's either us….or his revenge. You say you can't have both, so decide now. But don't expect to come back if you don't choose us." Ryu said coldly.

Ketsu looked at the ground silently, and then said, "I'm sorry Ryu, and I'm sorry Kyozoku, but I must do this. This is the reason I strive to live. Jiraiya was a father to me; I can't just let his death be in vein…I choose my revenge. If that's the way you feel about this, then so be it. But I will always be here for you, if you ever need me, I will be there. Goodbye…"

With that, Ketsu left in another direction than the one they were headed to. From that point on, the Tennoushihai…was no more.

---

Saru looked around cautiously as he stood over the rubble that was once his home. There were a few walls standing, but nothing beyond that was left intact.

After being there a few moments, he could already tell he was not alone. Soon enough, two men appeared in black cloaks just like in his memory. There was the short and fat one, and the taller one. Their faces were covered from their cloaks.

"You!" Saru said.

"So I see that you are of the Amatari clan. We could use another one like you." The tall one said.

"Where is my brother?" Saru said angrily as he tightly clenched his fists.

"Come with us, and we will explain everything." The short one said. "Or you can stay here with unanswered questions about your brother. The choice is yours."

Then the two cloaked men dashed off into the forest speedily. Saru shouted, "Wait!" and followed behind them trying to catch up.

"What are we going to do if he declines our offer?" The fat one asked quietly so that Saru did not hear.

"Do not worry Kagai-san. We will not allow him to enter our base and leave it without accepting our offer alive." The tall one said.

After a few hours, Saru stopped behind them as they stared down into a very large lake. "Where are we going?" Saru asked.

The man named Kagai turned around and said angrily, "Do not speak unless spoken to!"

Saru stayed quiet and watched as the tall man raised his arms high up in the air. The water in the lake drifted to both sides, leaving a clear, dry passage to a very large boulder. They walked toward the boulder and entered it as if it were never there in the first place. Once inside, the tall man put his arms down releasing the water allowing it to flow back down. Saru could hear the water filling up again.

"What do you want to know?" The tall man asked, still not showing his face or any part of his body.

"Where is my brother?" Saru asked looking around.

The base was very large, and had many stair cases and hallways.

"Your brother, Sora, is dead." The tall man said delivering news that had shattered Saru's heart right then and there.

Saru fell to his knees already in tears. "What?" He couldn't believe what he was hearing. That meant, that all he had done, Haburi's death, the training, was for nothing.

"He was murdered, at the hands of a boy named Uzumaki Naruto." Kagai said.

Saru repeated the name to himself whispering it over and over again. "How long ago was this?"

"Three years ago…" Kagai said. "It was definitely a tragic loss for this clan. Sora was a very strong shinobi who had completed many missions for us. He risked his life countless times to achieve goals that he believed in."

"What clan?" Saru asked, standing up.

"What is your name little boy?" Kagai asked.

"Saru."

"Well Saru," The taller man spoke up this time. "We belong to a small clan known as The Shouten. Originally, we were made up of six members. Now we are down to five. Sadly, your brother was the one to die among us. We may be a small clan, but we are all strong and skilled shinobi. But all of us are S-ranked criminals, as was your brother. You saw what he did to your parents."

"Why are you telling me this?" Saru asked.

"Because, we want to make you an offer." Kagai said.

The tall man crouched down to Saru's level. However, his face was still unable to be seen. "Saru, we can bring your brother back."

With those words, it seemed as though Saru had been born again. He smiled slightly asking, "How?"

"It will take time, and we will need your help. We have preserved his body so that we may revive him one day. Would you like to see it?" The tall man asked.

Saru nodded.

The three of them went into another very large room. There were three coffins, each of them standing up. The coffin was clear, so you could see what was inside it. Saru didn't pay any attention to any one except the one with his brother in it. "Sora…" He said softly touching the exterior of the coffin.

"What are you willing to do to get him back?" The tall man asked.

"Anything." Saru answered quickly. "I will give my body, mind, and soul just to have him alive."

"I can give you my word that The Shouten clan will do everything in its power to get your brother back. In return, we only ask one thing." The tall man said.

"And what is that?" Saru asked ready to agree.

"Your complete allegiance to this clan, ready to do anything once we tell you what to do. Remember Saru, we are criminals. We may ask you to do thing that seem unnecessary to you, but we are all working for one thing." The tall man informed him.

"What are you all working for?" Saru asked.

"That is information that we cannot give you at this moment. But all will be revealed to you in good time. What is your decision? Remember, once you swear your allegiance to us, you are ours, our own personal tool, for good." That tall man said.

"If you can guarantee my brother's revival, then the deal is done." Saru said.

"Very well then." The tall man said.

---

Naruto kept running, running away from what he though was his family. He was hurt, not physically, but he was deeply hurt emotionally. He headed for the place where he used to go to escape from his troubles: The waterfalls where he fought Garou.

He sat on the pillar where he always sat when he visited that place. There was something about the waterfalls, the nature, which gave him peace. It was as if that place was an alternate universe, where he had a completely different life. Going there made him forget of all his troubles. Usually, he just sat there, admiring the beautiful scenery. But this time was different.

He couldn't stop thinking about what had just happened. He had just killed his mother, the third Uzumaki. Now it was only him and his brother left. He wanted to know what happened to his clan, but he had no source for answers. His mother could have possibly answered many questions, but not anymore. His chance was gone. How could they not have told him? That was all he needed to snap. He could never go back again. What kind of family was he living for before? He was so blind, but not anymore, now he could see things clear as day. Nobody truly cared about him. All his friends were dead. His life was a complete mess.

After contemplating on that for a few hours, Naruto left the place and once again entered the forest. He traveled for miles without stopping. He couldn't stop, not now. He knew that soon enough, they would send out some members to retrieve him. The question was who? He knew that he could take on about two of them. But he was not match for three.

This thought only made Naruto run faster away from them. He ran for a few more hours until he sensed another shinobi's presence. He stopped and waited as his own blood brother came out to greet him.

---

"Hinata you are back!" Kisame said as Hinata walked through the entrance to their base. "Where's Naruto?"

Hinata sighed as she sat down on a nearby rock. "Kisame-sama, he's gone."

"What?" Kisame asked angrily. "What do you mean by that?"

"He's gone. He's not coming back. He ran away as soon as he found out who Naomi really was." Hinata explained.

"Why didn't u try to stop him?" Kisame asked.

Hinata chuckled. "I'm not strong enough to stop him."

"You're not strong enough yet." Itachi said appearing out of nowhere. "You will eventually surpass him. Even though he has been training for much longer, you have much more potential than he could ever have."

"What are you going to do about Naruto?" Hinata asked.

Itachi sighed. "Naruto is all grown up now; he has to take responsibilities for his own actions. Normally, we would let him go. But we have to bring him back, he already knows too much."

"What will you do if he doesn't comply?" Hinata asked.

"We will have to end his life. You understand Kisame don't you?" Itachi asked. Kisame nodded his head in sadness.

"I always knew this day would come. I just never expected it to be like this. Hinata, will you help if he turns against us?" Kisame asked.

Hinata stood up straight, "I'm ready to give my life for this organization, always have been. It doesn't matter who, I will take them out. But let me tell you right now, I saw Naruto fighting his mother. He poses a much, much, much greater threat than she ever did. He tried to look like he was trying, but any skilled shinobi could tell he wasn't even trying half of his total ability during that fight. If you want to take him down, you're going to need at least a few of us."

"We know that." Itachi said. "The day has finally come, where Naruto would turn against us. We were always afraid of this day. He is very powerful, along with a demon inside of him. Before he goes down, he is sure to release his demon powers, for that we will all go. Kisame, you, Zetsu, Mihniopaksu, and I will be needed for this mission."

"I always knew he would eventually surpass us." Kisame said with a slight smile on his face. "I just never knew it was going to be so soon. Our whole organization split into two for his sake. How can he possibly think that we don't care about him? But we can't have anything that will affect his judgment, and that variable was one of them. The time is coming when the other side will act upon us. They want to take you away from us, so they can have the upper hand. They believe in different things than us."

"When will we go?" Hinata asked.

"Tomorrow. Dawn. Be ready." Itachi said leaving the base to go somewhere else.

---

"In order for you to be in, we need to test your strength." The tall man said.

"Well how about a match right now?" Saru asked smiling as he looked down at his rocky arm.

"We never fight members here. That results in serious consequences." The tall man said harshly. "Instead, I'm going to send you on a mission to prove your strength. But first I would like you to meet some people."

Just then, two people arrived where they were. They too, were both wearing the large black cloaks that covered every inch of their body.

"Introduce yourselves." The tall man said politely. "This is Saru, he may join us."

The first one lifted his hands and pulled down his hood so that his face was visible. "My name is Ignorance. Just call me Eight." Eight had long black hair and black eyes.

"Eight? Why do you have such an unusual name?" Saru asked.

Eight sighed but smiled. "That's because I was named after what should be an eighth deadly sin. I wasn't born like you were; I was created, by this man right here." Eight patted Kagai on the back.

"Yes, I am basically the scientist in this organization." Kagai explained. "Eight has the unique ability to shape-shift into any living being he wants. He also has a skeleton consisting of pure metal solids. A different mix of many to create the strongest of all metals. He is also very flexible and can bend his body many different ways with no pain at all. There is one disadvantage that Ignorance does not have; he lacks the ability to perform any kind of Ninjutsu or Genjutsu."

Then Saru looked at the second person who then put his hood down. This person had long black hair as well, but he had his tied up in a pony tail. He almost looked like a girl. When he spoke, Saru could hear the kindness in his voice, and wondered what this person was doing in this organization. "Hello Saru. You are very young to be joining The Shouten. I too am young, as a matter of fact; I turned nineteen about a month ago. I'm glad to have met you Saru, my name is Haku."

"Now, Haku and Eight will accompany you no your mission. The objective is to collect the blood of a Sannin named Orochimaru. After you have collected the blood, kill him, and report straight back here. You will be fighting; these two will be here for support. Trust me; you're going to need it. Orochimaru is definitely at a Kage level. Haku and Eight will give you the specifics as you go now. Simply follow them and listen closely on what they have to say." The tall man ordered. "Go now. You will receive your own cloak such as ours once you have completed your mission."

With that, they were off, they left the base and traveled through the forest.

"First thing you should know Saru, is that Orochimaru has an accomplice. His name is Kabuto. We were very good friends long ago until we each took our separate paths. But he keeps me posted on the whereabouts of Orochimaru every time I visit him. It's been three years since I've talked to him, but I know exactly where to find him. We are going to go in there, and you will ask for Kabuto, he will be sitting in the room that we will enter. Then I'll talk with him from there. It's time we take action. You will handle Kabuto while on the other hand Eight and I will go after Orochimaru. Do you understand?" Haku asked.

"Yes." Saru answered ready for battle.

When they finally arrived to a hidden cave, they were led to a very dark and large room. With a few candles lit on the sides of the walls. Saru could barely see a chair with someone sitting on it. He decided to speak up. "Kabuto?" He asked.

A dark and deep voice answered him. It was not the answer he expected. "Kabuto's dead, and if you're looking for Orochimaru, he's not here. If you have a problem, then take it up with me. What's your business here?"

Haku then spoke up frowning. "What happened to him?"

The person sitting in the chair stood up and stepped closer to them saying coldly, "I killed him." The person stepped into the light; he had dark black hair that was exceptionally long. He had bangs to the side of his face and in his eyes were the sharingan with three coma's.

"What's your name kid?" Eight asked.

"Uchiha…Sasuke."

---

"Ketsu…" Naruto said softly staring intently into his brother's eyes.

"It truly has been a long time Naruto…" Ketsu replied staring right back at Naruto. "So what are we to do now?"

"Ketsu, I have to discuss something with you. What is the last memory you have of me?" Naruto asked leading up to a point.

"I remember that you saved my life, and I owe it to you. One day, I'm going to save yours." Ketsu with a smile. "But before I could say a single thing, four men came and got you. I haven't seen you since that day. I've always wondered what happened to you. I gave up hope that you were still alive about a year ago." Ketsu answered.

"Well there's an explanation for that. I belong to the Akatsuki organization." Naruto said.

"I know, you were the famous thirteen year-old that could destroy villages. I always wanted to fight you." Ketsu said.

"Well, that day, the Akatsuki came to take me back to the base. I have a demon inside me Ketsu. The nine-tailed Kyubbi. Our father sealed this demon inside of me when I was a baby, I was then tortured everyday until I was three. There, the Akatsuki rescued me and trained me until I was thirteen. We have been looking for all the demon vessels so we could extract their demon and gain that power for our own use. I participated in the Chunnin exams to capture the one-tailed demon vessel. The mission was a failure." Naruto explained.

"Wait, if they were looking for the demon vessels, then why did they train you to become member?" Ketsu asked.

"Since I had the nine-tailed demon, they figured that they could use me for their own use. And when I unleashed the demon, they would extract it from me, leading to my death. I was a tool for them, and I never knew. An Akatsuki member named Akuma created a strong seal that further sealed my demon inside of me so it was much harder to be unleashed. But as I got stronger, the seal would get weaker. Until that day, that day that I saved you. I lost control because my brother was in danger. They captured me and brought me back to the base, telling me everything. Then there was a dispute over me. Four of us wanted to save my life, the other five wanted to extract it and kill me. Luckily we escaped. We then recovered another demon vessel; the only person that had the demon extracted but still lived. Somehow, the demon's power stayed within her, but the demon itself was extracted. She was the Akatsuki's secret weapon, their trump card, with her amazing potential; she could win wars for them. Luckily, we were able to take her coffin with us." Naruto said.

"Coffin? She was dead?" Ketsu asked.

"No, only frozen, preserved. There is no limit to her power. After a few months, they sent me off to an island, where I trained there for two and a half years, that's where I've been for so long. When I came back, they sent me on a mission along with the demon vessel. Her name is Hinata. She had definitely improved an unimaginable amount, almost to my level at the present moment. The mission was to assassinate a person who was meddling with the Akatsuki affairs or our side at least. They said that she could ruin all of our plans." Naruto said.

"I see…" Ketsu replied.

"Do you remember our mother?" Naruto asked.

Ketsu looked up at the sky saying, "Vaguely. I remember that she left me when I was small, Jiraiya found me a few months later and I stayed with him ever since. All I know is that I was trying to find her for about seven years. I gave up after that, realizing that she was probably dead. I wanted to find out about my past. I don't even know my father…"

Naruto sighed. "At least you have a memory of our mother; I don't remember our parents at all. But I have something to tell you."

"What is it?" Ketsu asked feeling curious.

"Whatever I say today, I want you to know, you may hate me, but you can't change the fact that we are blood brothers. I will always be here for you, even though you may resent me and despise me after what I say to you here right now." Naruto began. "I met her…"

Ketsu's eyes widened as he said, "What?"

"Her name is Uzumaki Naomi." Naruto said.

"How is she? How did you meet her? What was she like? Where is she now?" Ketsu asked feeling a light flicker inside of him.

Naruto looked down in sadness. "Ketsu, Naomi was the person we had to assassinate. Her and her teammates. I swear that I had no idea! With her last dying breaths, she said, 'you look just like your father…' at that moment I realized that she was the third Uzumaki alive. And I killed her. After the battle, Hinata told me that if they told me who she was, then I wouldn't be able to kill her. I can't understand why the Akatsuki would make me do something like that. All my life, I always felt that I belonged with them, I felt as if they were family. But even though I felt that, I still felt that something was out of place…But when they stood up for me, I knew that they truly cared about me. I wasn't smart enough to look past their lies. They only wanted me as a weapon longer. I left the Akatsuki, for good. I won't go back there ever again. I'm sure that they will be after me though. I only wish for your forgiveness. I know that you were looking for our mother, but now that hope is gone. I'm truly sorry. I know that I don't deserve you forgiveness, but if you could find it in your heart, to one day be able to overlook this and call me brother again, that would mean the world to me." Naruto said kneeling down to Ketsu.

Ketsu walked up to Naruto and put his hand on his head. "Stand up brother and look me in the eyes."

Naruto stood up so that his blue eyes met Ketsu's. They both had tears in their eyes, and stood there in silence. Ketsu then raised his fist and punched Naruto hard in the face. Naruto fell to the ground a few feet away from him.

"GET UP AGAIN!" Ketsu screamed crying more.

Naruto did as he was told and stood there, looking devastated. Ketsu walked up to Naruto and then stood there for a moment. After a few seconds, he hugged his brother tightly. "Naruto, all is forgiven. Nobody can ever take you away from me. You'll always be with me, you're my brother." Ketsu said as Naruto hugged him back. They both let their tears drip down from their cheeks and fall lightly on each other's shoulders.

"You know," Naruto began as they stopped embracing each other. "Before I left, I told Hinata, that I had only one thing left to live for, my real family. The only person I had left in the world, and I said your name."

"Ha, ha, ha, ha! So small insignificant Naruto has found his brother at last!" Zetsu said loudly as he watched from a tree branch above them.

"Zetsu-san!" Naruto shouted as he looked up.

"There's only one, we can take him!" Ketsu said with total confidence.

"No, they wouldn't be that dumb. They would send at least three members of the five, and Hinata. That's the minimum." Naruto said looking around. "Just keep your eyes pealed, they're here somewhere."

Soon enough, Kisame, Itachi, Hinata, and Mihniopaksu appeared completely surrounding them.

Itachi then spoke, "Naruto, we are going to bring you back! Any attempt of resistance will result in death. If you do not comply, we have no choice but to end your life. You have gotten out of hand."

Naruto smiled even though it was five against two. "Are you that afraid of my powers Itachi that you would bring everybody to stop just one person? I'm not going back; I belong with my brother Ketsu."

"Your words will not save you, neither will your brother. You have brought death upon both of you." Itachi said coldly.

Then, a very familiar voice was heard by all. Everybody turned around to see five Akatsuki members appear with Akuma leading them. "As I said before Itachi, he was a dangerous boy. You should have listened and we could have then extracted his demon. Then we would still be one group and wouldn't have this rivalry between us. But you chose him, and look where he brought you! It's too late to go back now Itachi! Your side of the Akatsuki will perish soon enough. We are here for him as well as the other demon vessel."

"This could get messy…" Naruto said as he stood by Ketsu both of them ready to battle.

It was one side of the Akatsuki, against the other side of the Akatsuki, against Naruto and Ketsu. Both sides wanted Naruto's demon, Akuma's side wanted Hinata as well. The tension quickly built up as a great battle began…

---

"Kabuto served his purpose anyway." Eight said putting his hand on Haku's shoulder for comfort. "We would have to have done this eventually anyway. Instead, this brat took care of him for us."

"We want Orochimaru's blood." Haku said. "We won't leave until we have it. Where is he?"

Saru felt a shiver down his spine as he heard an evil chuckle from the darkness. "I'm here. It's my blood that you want?"

"And your life!" Haku shouted. "Saru, handle this Sasuke boy, we will take care of Orochimaru."

"Hai!" Saru said as he ran towards Sasuke ready to kill his opponent. Eight and Haku ran to fight Orochimaru.

"So that boy is from the Amatari clan?" Orochimaru asked as he dodged several swings from Eight as Haku ran to catch up.

"As a matter of fact he is!" Haku shouted as he jumped up and landed on Orochimaru's head kicking him to the ground. Orochimaru stood up quickly still smiling. "I'm sure we could come to a compromise. What do you say?"

"You're not exactly in the position to make demands buddy!" Eight said smiling as he punched Orochimaru through the wall.

Orochimaru still kept his devious smile. "Let me give you my offer, it will be your choice to accept it or not. The deal is, you walk away with your lives and my blood. I walk away with my life, Sasuke, and the boy that you brought here with you."

"That's the worst deal you can possibly get! What makes you think we are going to lose against you?" Haku asked as he punched Orochimaru back though another wall inside the building once again.

"I have some leverage. Sasuke! Take care of that boy." Orochimaru shouted to his apprentice.

Saru caught up to Sasuke who stood completely still. Saru then swung at Sasuke's face with his left fist. Saru looked into his opponent's eyes as his punched missed. Sasuke backed up, put his foot in Saru's path tripping him in the process, and grabbed Saru's left normal arm. He then put his other hand on Saru's left shoulder, ready to pull Saru's arm out of its socket.

"No!" Saru shouted as Sasuke pulled Saru's arm completely off of his body leaving him with one rocky arm and blood all over his clothes and the floor.

"Saru!" Haku shouted. "Alright, we'll let you live, but we're taking the boy!"

Orochimaru then said, "You're not in a position to make demands. But you have a deal. However, leave the boy's arm here."

Eight took out a small class vile that was empty. Orochimaru got a kunai and cut his arm, leaking blood into the vile and onto the floor. "Let's go!" Eight shouted as he and Haku ran out of the place grabbing Saru on their way.

"What the hell happened back there Saru?" Haku asked.

"I never expected it, but he used the Mangekyou sharingan making me vulnerable to attacks afterwards. That's how he got a hold of my arms. I feel weak…" Saru said.

"Don't speak, save your energy, at this rate, you could die of blood loss!" Haku said. "Eight, do you have his blood?"

"Right here." Eight pulled out the vile full of blood and smiled. "Now Kagai can make the ultimate shinobi!"

A/N: Hey guys, as you can see, the plot is kind of revealing itself. There are much bigger things than just this, I can assure you. Just please review and tell me how you like the story so far. How did I do?


	18. A Brother's Bond

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Chapter Eighteen: A Brother's Bond

"Kagai, Kagai!" Eight screamed as he, Haku, and Saru ran into the base frantically. Saru stayed quiet even though he was in a great pain with his arm gone. Even though he was glad Sasuke had not ripped off his special arm, he still cried silently because he was helpless. He was suffering from a great deal of blood loss as well.

Kagai took a quick look at Saru's wound and then drew a conclusion saying, "There is only one solution to this problem. He will die of blood loss soon enough, his only option is to have an arm sown onto him. Obviously it can't be any of ours, so we will need to find someone…"

"Well then I'll just go rip off somebody's left arm and bring it back here!" Eight shouted angrily.

"It's not that simple!" Kagai screamed back. It has to be roughly about the same size and same blood type; the foreign arm could not contain any diseases whatsoever. The problem is that we don't have enough time to find just any person. There is one option, but we will have to let Saru decide…"

"What is that?" Saru asked looking at Kagai with hope.

Kagai sighed then saying, "Your brother Sora is your only option. He is of your blood, your own relative none the less. He is also frozen and clean, so no diseases or viruses run through his blood. However, the process will cause Sora to lose his rocky arm, resulting in you having two. There will be no problems with this procedure, because it appears that no blood runs through the rocky arm. He will be fine, just armless. It's your decision Saru."

"I am thinking in long terms, and I'm going to go through with it because our leader said he needed me. I swore I would do everything I could to bring him back. When he is alive again, I will give him back his arm, and take another person's, we will have enough time to do it then when he is alive. Please Kagai, do this procedure on me." Saru said desperately.

"It will only take a matter of minutes for me." Kagai said rushing over to Saru making him lie down on the ground. "Eight, I want you to go get me Sora's body. Unfreeze it then bring it here. Haku, bring me my long tool tray from my laboratory."

The two shinobi disappeared and reappeared a few moments later bringing what was needed.

Kagai was right, after a few minutes, Saru felt blood circulating his body instead of leaving it. He looked at himself and found that he now had two rocky arms. They both seemed to work fine.

"You need some rest Saru, get some soon." Kagai said. "Eight, freeze back Sora's body and put it back in the glass coffin. But first, you have something for me."

Saru watched intently as Eight handed the vile of Orochimaru's blood over to Kagai who was smiling very deviously.

"Finally, with the last ingredient needed, I will be able to create a shinobi stronger than all of us! He will be my greatest creation! The blood of the three Sannin, what a joyous day this is!" Kagai shouted.

"You fool!" Eight shouted grabbing a tight hold of Kagai's wrist holding him back. "If you create somebody stronger than all of us, then how can we stop him if he turns against us? There may be casualties in the Shouten. Who knows how angry our leader would be…I know you do not want to see him angry again Kagai, remember the last time?"

Suddenly a face of fear spread upon Kagai's face. It quickly faded as he then said, "I have already discussed this with him. I will have control over him, not to worry, I am his creator. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to create a weapon that could wreak havoc across the country!" Kagai suddenly stormed off with Orochimaru's blood into a dark room and quickly shut the door behind him. Saru heard the door click several times as Kagai locked the door behind him.

"How long will this take?" Saru asked.

"Nobody knows for sure…" Haku replied staring at the door Kagai had just locked behind him. "For some, it may only take minutes, but judging by him locking the door, it may possibly take hours, or even days."

"How long did it take to make you?" Saru asked Eight.

"It took about four months to gather everything; it took about two days to create me. The Sannins' blood is the main ingredient for this shinobi. He will have all Jutsu from each of them and have each of their abilities such as Tsunade's unusual strength. He will truly be his greatest creation…" Eight said.

"What happened when our leader got mad?" Saru asked politely.

Haku then spoke to him saying, "Saru, many things may seem hidden from you because The Shouten cannot reveal everything at once. You will slowly gain more and more of his trust until you will finally have learned everything. You are free to ask questions, but do not feel bad when sometimes we do not answer them. As for now, let's take a walk, I've been meaning to talk to you…"

Haku and Saru then left the base as Eight returned Sora's body to the way it was, frozen and in the coffin.

---

"Naruto, face it, it's over for you. Do you think that even if you have improved, you can take down all of the Akatsuki and Hinata?" Itachi asked. "Look around, you stand no chance. Just give up now and save the trouble."

"Why is this kid smiling?" Akuma asked a little agitated.

"I'm smiling because I know this is going to be a challenge. But my brother Ketsu and I, well if we stick together, I know we can pull through any obstacles that come our way. I see this as one of them. So do you know what I say Itachi? I say that if it's over for me, then it'll be over for you as well. I won't let my brother and I die in vein. I will fight with every bit of me and take as many of you down as I can. I have all the family I need right here." Naruto patted Ketsu on the back who was very tense. "Ketsu, let me introduce you to the Akatsuki, on the right side, we have Itachi, Kisame, Zetsu, Mihniopaksu, and Hinata. On the left side we have Akuma, Deidara, Sasori, Hidan, and Kakuzu. They are all very strong, but don't let that fact get to you, I'm sure we can take a lot of them on. Remember brother, I will be with you until the end of time."

"Naruto, you are my brother, I won't let you die. Don't say such things, even if the odds are against us, we can still do this thing." Ketsu said smiling slightly.

"Itachi, surrender Hinata to us now, and we will let you off easy. You can take this the simple or hard way, it's your choice." Akuma said forcefully.

"We wouldn't give you the greatest weapon of all time for anything Akuma. You will simply have to kill us all in order to take her." Itachi said smiling.

"That can be arranged…" Deidara said chuckling a bit.

"Let's stop arguing!" Naruto shouted raising his hands. "Let us settle this once and for all!" As soon as that was said, the battle had immediately started. The Akatsuki went straight for each other; side against side. Hinata rushed after Ketsu who jumped high in the air above everybody. Naruto joined the one on one battle between Akuma and Itachi. Kisame and Zetsu paired up to fight Sasori and Kakuzu. Mihniopaksu was alone to fight Deidara and Hidan. The battle was set, the fury was everywhere, and the killing intent was almost visible.

---

Haku and Saru walked slowly through the forest. They both stayed silent, listening to the birds chirp. "Saru," Haku began, "I brought you out here to tell you something."

"And what is that?" Saru asked still amazed with his new arm. It seemed even better than his old arm and other arm that he had now.

"Well, I too joined The Shouten for the exact same reason as you. Did you get a good look at each person in the three coffins?" Haku asked.

"No, I was too busy looking at my brother. I almost thought I'd never see him again, and I was so close to him. He said there is a way to revive him, and that's why I'm here." Saru said.

"You swore your allegiance to The Shouten because you want to save your brother. Your brother is important to you, is he not?"

"Yes…" Saru said.

"Before I joined the Shouten, I traveled with a friend. I considered him a father to me. His name is Momochi Zabuza. We always traveled together. You see, he found me when I was abandoned long ago. He took care of me; he made sure I was alright. So I followed him, he is my special person. I would gladly give up my life for him any day. But I couldn't save him from his death. Many ANBU members had been tracking us down over the years and finally caught up with us. We were surrounded by so many, the odds were completely against us, yet we still fought for our freedom from the law. We couldn't die yet…But the exact opposite happened of what I wanted. Instead of me dying to protect Zabuza, he saved my life by sacrificing his. There was no pain greater than to see him fall to the ground lifeless. I finished off the rest of our opponents in rage. It was at that time, when our leader found me. He gave me the same deal that he offered you. And I quickly accepted it. This was four years ago." Haku explained.

Saru's eyes opened wide as Haku spoke the last sentence. "Four years?" Saru asked to reassure himself.

"Yes…"Haku said sadly. "I swore my allegiance to him, and he took advantage of it. Where am I? Am I with Zabuza? The answer is no. He is still dead, and there is no way to bring him back. I've come to accept that. Our leader lied to both of us. Their bodies are there to bring us hope, but it is false. I only tell you now, because you still have a chance to get out. It'll be hard, but I'm sure that you can get out of this. The truth hurts, but I tell you no lies, your brother is beyond saving."

Saru fell to his knees almost in tears. "You lie! He'll come back! Maybe you weren't loyal enough, so our leader didn't grant you your wish yet! Have you thought of that?"

"Actually, I have…" Haku said. "I've been nothing but loyal, but as I said, I've come to accept the cold truth. Our loved ones are gone for good. We can't do anything about it. It's my life that I have to look after, not Zabuza's. Zabuza died so that I could have a future, what's the use of his death if I die now? If I can't save him, then at least I can carry out his dying wish, for me to live, to breathe, and to fight for my survival, for my existence. This has taught me a lot, and I can tell you now that I regret everyday not having died myself. But I can't go back in time, it has already happened. I'm alive and Zabuza is dead. You have to come to accept your brother's death as well…"

"Haku, you're wrong!" Saru was now in tears. He couldn't believe that there was a possibility that Haku was right. Haku had all the reasons, all the proof. But all this meant was that he would never be able to talk to his brother again. He would never be able to find out about his clan's history or about his family. I Haku was right, then Saru had nothing to live for anymore.

"No Saru, I'm not wrong, it's just not what you want to hear! Listen to me, get out of The Shouten. You will risk your life for nothing! I have wasted four years of my life, thinking about this every single day! I've asked our leader to revive him countless times, and every time he has the same excuse: The time will come; I only need to be patient. Well you know what? I have been patient, and I'm tired of it, but I can't do anything. If I want to keep my life, then I will have to keep my oath. It's not too late for you! Do as I say!" Haku shouted.

"If our leader says that he'll revive Zabuza, then he will! You have to believe him! You have no trust…" Saru argued.

Haku then punched Saru in the stomach, knocking out his air completely from his body. "How can you say something like that? You've been in The Shouten for ten minutes, don't act like you know anything! You don't, you are just a tool, when he doesn't need you anymore, he'll dispose of you. Nobody knows exactly what he's planning, but since you're here, he needs you for something. But when he has no use for you anymore, then your life will be just as good as the thousands of others he has killed. He is unstoppable, he may even be the strongest shinobi there is or ever was…You don't know anything about anything! So keep your mouth shut! You only make yourself look like a fool! Why can't you see that I'm trying to warn you? What do I have to gain if you leave? The answer is nothing! I only have my life to possible lose just by telling you this. Rebellion is the worst thing there is in the Shouten, but you still have a chance to get out of this. Forget about your brother Saru, he's gone. He's gone and nothing can change that, you need to learn to accept it just as I have…But you have a real chance to do something with your life, become someone."

"No I don't! I killed the Hokage of Konoha just before I left to find my brother. If I go back, then my life will be over anyway. They are already looking for me, I am safe here. I can't just leave; the reason is because what if you're wrong? There is still a slight possibility that our leader is just waiting for the right moment to resurrect Zabuza. And that's the only hope that I have to rely on. I can't just walk out; I'll be dead within a few months if I do. I don't want to leave my brother, I want to be by his side, I want him alive right with me. It doesn't matter what it takes, I'll do it. And if he won't give me what he promised, then I'll make him do it!" Saru said raising his fist to the sky.

"Your determination is almost inspirational, but it truly is pathetic. You are blind, but it's your decision, I can't decide for you. There is no way you can make him do what you want, he answers to no one. There are many things that you don't know about him, he's…." Haku managed to stop what he was about to say. "I can't tell you. You'll soon find out about him. Things are starting to change around here, The Shouten will be making its move very soon…"

"I hate being excluded from all this! Everybody keeps saying I'll know soon enough but I want to know now! Tell me Haku!" Saru shouted angrily.

"It's not my place to reveal these things to you. If I do, it could cost me my life. My life is exactly what I'm trying to protect. I've given up hope on trying to raise Zabuza, I know now that you can't, nobody can…He's dead, and that's the end of it." Haku said looking down.

"I can't believe that's what you wanted to tell me. Is that why you brought me out here Haku? To tell me to give up hope? How do I know you're not lying? For all I know, you could have some plan behind this. I'm not going to believe you, I can't, this is all I have." Saru said.

Haku was infuriated. "YOU FOOL! If that is what you want then so be it! But know that in The Shouten, you must live up to our leader's expectations. And I promise you that he is only using you! Don't listen to me, and you will get what you truly deserve…"

"Is that a threat?" Saru asked. "How would you know anything? You are probably being used as well. If he's fooling me, then he's fooling you to. Zabuza is worthless to him, and to the world. He's only precious to you, but then again, what do you matter?"

That was the last straw. Haku appeared right in front of Saru lifting him up in the air by his neck with one hand. "Do not talk about me and Zabuza like that! I will kill you without Hesitation!"

"Why don't you go ahead and try it!" Saru screamed as he attempted to kick Haku's face. Haku disappeared and reappeared on top of a small boulder.

"Saru-kun, come, and I will give you a taste of what a real Shouten member should be like." Haku said challenging Saru.

That was all Saru needed to charge at Haku.

---

"Itachi, I will show you the meaning of true power. As a team, you always seemed the best of us, but I was holding back this whole time." Akuma said with a smile.

"That won't be a problem because I was doing the same." Itachi said activating his Sharingan.

"Well then, I guess we shall see who was holding back more!" Akuma said.

They both charged closing in on the space between each other every second. Just before they collided, Naruto appeared in-between them with his arms out towards them. They each ran into Naruto's open palms as Naruto said, "Kaeru no Jutsu." Suddenly, Itachi and Akuma both felt a wave of force send them back flying many feet away from each other.

Itachi and Akuma both realized that their bodies were also attached to chakra strings that were connected to Naruto's fingers. Naruto jumped up high into the air bringing his opponents along with him who had no choice but to follow.

Naruto pulled his arms that were extended outward horizontally inward so that Akuma and Itachi were forced to fly toward each other. He then threw a kunai with an exploded tag right in-between them the millisecond before they collided. BOOM! Naruto fell back to the ground as Itachi and Akuma were forced away from each other once again from the impact of the explosion. Each of them was hurt very badly. Naruto was without a scratch.

Ketsu had been dodging Hinata's sword swipes very easily. He had trained himself to dodge weapons when training with Ryu who mainly used his staff. Hinata seemed to lack form and was very sloppy. But that didn't mean that she wasn't fast. Ketsu had to constantly be on the move or else he would soon be chopped up into tiny pieces.

His dodging only angered Hinata causing her to slash faster. Ketsu saw his advantage when Hinata swung her sword down vertically. He simply moved the sword more down and drove his fist into Hinata's face sending her flying into a nearby tree and denting it. Her sword was now on the ground beside Ketsu.

"Now you are weaponless, what are you going to do?" Ketsu asked with a slight smile.

Hinata dashed at Ketsu who swung at her incoming head. She moved out of the way and whirled around Ketsu staying low to the ground so she could grab her sword back but Ketsu had his foot over her sword. Ketsu only struck the top of her head sending her to the ground on her belly. "Pathetic." Ketsu said lifting his foot off of Hinata's sword. "Take it back! You're really going to be needing it. I'm going to get serious."

Hinata grabbed her sword and positioned herself to fight saying, "Then so am I. BUKI EITATSU!" She quickly crouched down and stabbed her sword into the ground causing hundreds of different blades to be shot up from underground all in and around Ketsu's location. The weapons differed from swords to spears to even daggers.

Hinata smiled when she saw that Ketsu was in the air above her coming down. She lifted up her sword saying, "Shidenissen no Jutsu." The sky quickly grew dark and a lightning bolt suddenly struck down on Ketsu. Suddenly Hinata was knocked back many feet back and she was in great pain. Once Hinata realized what just occurred, she attempted to stand up as Ketsu began to explain to her clarifying her questions but she realized that she could not move even a finger.

"I knew you were going to use an element of some sort to attack me. I had my hand up just in case you would send down lightning, and you did. What you didn't notice, was that I had a rasengan in my hand that was pointing toward the sky. This rasengan is special, the perfected rasengan of all time. Instead of your opponent having the element of surprise, you can turn it straight around just like I did to you. This rasengan is practically invisible, it has ten times the force of a regular one, and it can absorb any types of attack. I can block a Taijutsu attack with it and drive it into my opponent multiplying the force of the hit. So I absorbed your lightning bolt, and now you are temporarily paralyzed."

Ketsu stepped forward until he was beside Hinata. He smiled as he said, "Face it; you never had a chance to defeat me. This battle was over as soon as you stepped into it. Now you have to learn to withstand the consequences. I'll do whatever it takes to ensure my brother's survival, even if it means giving up my own life; even if it means killing my opponent, in your case, that's you."

"I…won't let you do this…" Hinata said.

"You can't stop me." Ketsu argued prying Hinata's sword from her stiff fingers. He lifted the sword above his head so that the point of the blade was pointing straight at Hinata. Then he drove the sword deep into her chest so that the only thing you could see was the handle sticking out of her body. The blade had pierced completely through her body and went into the ground pinning her body down. Great amounts of blood gushed out of her body as Ketsu patted her forehead saying, "You'll definitely feel that in a minute. Now remember, nobody wants to hear you scream, but by the time you do feel it, you will be too weak from blood loss that you probably won't even be able to think right. Good bye."

Ketsu dashed off to join a different battle leaving Hinata there in her own puddle of blood paralyzed temporarily weakening by the second.

"Naruto, Hinata is taken care of." Ketsu said reuniting with his brother as Itachi and Akuma stood up in pain closing in on them.

"Good job Ketsu, now all we need is some leverage in this battle, they all want to capture me, so in the end, it's going to come down to us battling about everybody. We need more people, even though I trust in our strength, I know that we alone are not enough to defeat them. But I have just the thing to help us out. RISE, ADA BUSHI!" Naruto said lifting his arms up into the air.

Suddenly, a great samurai warrior appeared in front of Naruto, his bones rotting, and his flesh peeled off. His armor and sword were both very rusted, but his sword was still very sharp.

"Impossible!" Akuma shouted angrily. "You said that Bushi exploded self destructing himself."

Naruto smiled. "He did, but his physical form cannot be changed by that, it can only be changed by the process of Nature. Now, Zenyu no Jutsu!" Naruto walked toward Ada Bushi and grasped his bony arm. As soon as his hand came in contact with his undead ally, Bushi began to heal very quickly. His flesh came back, his bones became stronger, and his organs became fresh again. His skin reappeared and he seemed alive again, to have color in his complexion.

Bushi turned to Naruto as his armor and sword's rust began to fade away and become shiny and hard once again. "Thank you Naruto, for giving me my life back."

"How can this be?" Akuma asked even more agitated. "It is impossible to bring someone back from the dead without having to sacrifice one's own life. What kind of Jutsu are you using Naruto?"

"You're right Akuma. But he's not alive; his soul is not within his body anymore. He has a mind, but that along with all his flesh and bone will rot back to its original state after twenty four hours. But for now, he's a live weapon; I give you Ada Bushi in his prime, unstoppable according to the legends." Naruto said smiling. "This is our leverage Ketsu."

"Good enough for me." Ketsu said still ready to fight.

"Bushi, please, do me the favor of fighting on my side. Give me your loyalty, I beg of you. These monsters wish to kill me, I want you to protect us and kill as many as you possibly can." Naruto said.

"You wish is my command." Bushi said bowing slightly.

He then turned to face the battle that was taking place between Kisame and Zetsu against Sasori and Kakuzu. He took a step forward but stopped as a new foe arose. Hinata stood in his way, a large aura of clear chakra surrounded her entire body. Her long hair moved like it was a windy day, and she wanted revenge. She held her sword very tightly and ignored the blade that was now stained with her blood. Her wound was completely healed, but her clothes were drenched.

"I cannot let you pass!" Hinata said through her gritted teeth.

"Hinata!" Itachi said. "We taught you how to copy moves, Bushi will self destruct and explode taking as many people along with him before he dies. I don't want you to kill him, toy with him first so that he uses all his moves, trust me, you can definitely learn some very deadly moves from a great samurai such as him."

"Hai." Hinata said without looking back.

Ada Bushi also held his sword tightly in front of him. Not a moment later and they both jumped high up into the air as they fought with their blades, testing each other's strength, as well as will to survive.

"I…I don't understand…" Ketsu said sadly. "I though I killed her, she was sure to be dead."

Naruto then reassured him. "Ketsu, Hinata is different from everyone else, while all the demon vessels die when their demon is extracted from them, Hinata survived. She has great potential, her clear chakra is neutral, and she has no demon in her. Her chakra must have healed her wound, I knew that she would definitely be our greatest problem, but Bushi can stall and buy us time."

"Are you saying that even the great Ada Bushi isn't strong enough to take her down?" Ketsu asked.

"No, he's not. It may even be possible that I'm not strong enough to beat her. But I'm not going to take that chance. Let's take it one step at a time and get rid of these two fools first." Naruto said looking at Akuma and Itachi who were now paired ready to fight them.

---

Kagai finally had finished. He had finished creating his greatest creation yet. He opened the steel door after unlocking everything and stepped out. Eight was there sitting down waiting.

"What took you so long?" Eight asked sounding very bored.

"You have no right to talk, he is the strongest I have ever made, and he even surpasses you by a great amount." Kagai said smiling deviously. He stepped out of his lab and took out his apron which was full of blood and other kinds of liquid that Eight did not recognize.

A tall man followed behind the creator. He wore a tight black suit that fit his muscular body just like everybody else did.

"His name?" Eight asked impatiently standing up to greet the new member.

"His name is Kaji." Kagai said. "Now it's time to show him to our leader."

"I definitely want to see his reaction." Eight said smiling.

They walked through a large corridor until they finally reached a mid-sized room that had a large chair made of bones and a table in front of that chair. There was a fire place in the background and the leader of The Shouten sat in the chair.

"He is ready…" Kagai said in the most respectful voice he could possibly muster up. Kaji entered the room followed by a beaming Eight.

The leader stood up still cloaked from head to toe. He walked around and around Kaji pondering. "And you used the blood of the three Sannin?" He asked.

Kaji had short spiky hair that was black. His teeth were very white as well as sharp. He stood a little taller than Eight with an expressionless face.

"Yes my lord." Kagai said.

"Then we must act quickly. Eight, you will take a trip with our new friend to Orochimaru's hideout. I you want to see him in action. What is his name by the way?" The leader asked.

"His name is Kaji, and he will listen to whatever you say." Kagai said lowering his head.

A few moments later, Eight, and Kaji were in the dark room that Saru, Haku, and Eight were in many hours ago.

This time, Orochimaru was there in the chair, smiling. It was as if he was expecting them.

"I knew you would not allow me to keep my life. So it seems there isn't much else I can do except fight for it." Orochimaru said.

"I think you're right. Kaji, kill him and the Uchiha that is hiding in here somewhere." Eight said in a monotone.

"Done." Kaji said as he stepped forward ready to face Orochimaru.

"I can feel his power, his potential. And I can't help but smile. You all have made the greatest mistake of your lives. So his name is Kaji then? I like it. Kaji, I want you to attack this man here that just gave you orders."

"Done." Kaji said as he whirled around and punched Eight forcefully through the wall. Eight stood up wiping the rubble of his tight black suit.

"You fool!" Orochimaru shouted still keeping his smile. "Since the other two Sannin are gone, that means I'm the only one who can truly control him. He is of my blood. Now you have been sent here to kill me, but you are outnumbered three to one." Sasuke then stepped out of the darkness. All three of them followed Eight outside the dark room into broad daylight.

"You brought me…my greatest weapon." Orochimaru said. "With him I can achieve so many goals I had in mind much faster now. I must thank you and your organization for that. Luckily, I will let you keep your life. I want you to run back to your base wherever it is, and tell your leader, that I have Kaji, and he is now under my control."

Eight stood up and did as he was told. It was stupid to stay and fight when he couldn't win. He left straight for the Shouten base full of fear of what his leader might do to him after hearing the news.

"Sasuke, Kaji, come, we have a meeting to attend to." Orochimaru said dashing through the forest.

A/N: Hey guys sorry that it took me so long to update. The next one will probably take longer because I'm swamped for the next few weeks. I'll try to write the next chapter whenever I can. Please review and thank you for your time.


	19. A Flash of Destiny

Disclaimer: I do now own Naruto

Chapter Nineteen: A Flash of Destiny

"There is only one way to defeat them…" Akuma said. "I'll admit it; we need to come together as a two man team, just like the old days, because if we don't, they'll win."

"But this doesn't change a thing!" Itachi said ready to battle.

"We can take care of these guys." Ketsu said optimistically. "After all, you took them out the first time just like that. Look how hurt they are."

"Don't underestimate them; they are the two strongest Akatsuki members. I was able to inflict a large amount of damage because I caught them off guard. We have to fight seriously. We have to take care of them as fast as we can. Bushi can only hold on for so long…" Naruto said. "Let's go!"

---

Their speed was like lightning, their form was perfect, and the battle was deadly. Ada Bushi and Hyugga Hinata, crossing blades with each other. Each of them had their reasons to fight. Hinata was fighting because she was told to. Ada was doing the same, but he was buying Naruto and Ketsu time. He was gong to try his best, even if it came to self destructing himself.

Their swords could hardly be seen, but with their quick reflexes, they were able to move swiftly enough to block each other's attacks. Each time their weapons clashed, they would attack once more, this time faster, harder, and stronger. Soon enough, there were sparks flying everywhere from the friction between the two blades.

Each of them kept a straight face. Their minds were racing, having only less than half a split second to calculate the next move. One mistake and it was certain death. Finally they both jumped back increasing the distance between them.

Hinata was panting as a sweat drop fell slowly down her cheek. Bushi showed no sign of weariness. They both prepared themselves again. They rushed at each other and after a second, had crossed paths and kept on going. They both stopped facing away from each other.

Hinata gasped as she witnessed her side slowly open like a slit and blood gush out. Bushi had got her. But she had to keep on going. She whirled around to see Bushi smiling as he wiped Hinata's blood from his sword.

"You didn't catch that did you?" Bushi asked still smiling deviously. "So I see you aren't at that level yet. It must have taken a lot of training to get as far as you are because you are not a natural swordsman. There are two kinds of people: Those who are born with skill, and those who train to attain it. You are the second kind, and I am the first. We are on completely different levels; I hope that you are willing to give your life in this battle."

Hinata then realized what he meant by his first question. He had performed a Jutsu so fast that she did not even notice. That is why she was wounded and he was perfectly fine. Ada Bushi, a worthy opponent indeed. She smiled to herself as she said, "I guess that means I'm going to have to try even harder than my best."

"Your speed is not the problem, it is your focus. You must be alert of what's going on around you. For instance-" Bushi stopped talking and lifted his foot releasing his hold on a small vine that was connected to a tree.

"A trap!" Hinata thought to herself as many sharp wooden spears appeared from above heading toward her. "Heavenly spin!" She shouted spinning around so quickly creating a barrier around herself. The barrier destroyed the spears that came at her.

"So you can use moves that belong to your clan?" Ada Bushi asked.

"Only a few. I was raised by the Akatsuki, so how could they teach me my clan's moves? What I want to know is, how did you manage to create a trap, and cut me all in a matter of seconds?" Hinata asked.

"Like this." Ada Bushi said.

Hinata turned around to see another Bushi behind her.

"Kage Bunshin." The one behind you made the trap. But I created a strong invisible wind around my blade as we rushed past each other. I only had to move my blade five feet from your side and that would cut it. I did it too fast for you to copy." Bushi said. With that, his Bunshin behind Hinata disappeared with a poof.

"No matter how hard you try, you won't be able to beat me. I'm above your level." Bushi said coldly.

Hinata only smiled slightly and said, "Well what an opportunity then, to learn, from Ada Bushi himself."

"Anything that you learn will be lost with your death!" Bushi shouted jumping high up into the air. "TEI KATANA!" Bushi swung his sword downwards vertically. The movement created a slightly visible wind that headed toward Hinata.

Hinata jumped as far as she could to the side barely dodging the wind attack. The wind collided with the earth creating a V-shaped crater. Bushi landed on the ground looking at Hinata once more shouting again, "Tei Katana!" He swung his sword horizontally this time but still in Hinata's direction.

Hinata decided to fight fire with fire; she swung her blade vertically toward Bushi shouting the same thing, "Tei Katana!"

The wind attacks met in the middle and created a large and deep hole in the ground.

Hinata smiled again. "Thank you for that move, I can see the destruction and power that follows. And it uses hardly any chakra at all."

Her statement only angered Bushi even more. "Kage Bunshin!" He screamed. The odd thing was that Bushi didn't make a copy of himself, but of his sword. He now had two swords, one in each hand, and was dashing toward Hinata.

---

Akuma and Itachi retreated a few meters back whispering to each other their plan.

"Itachi, you know what needs to be done. I just need to get close enough to Naruto to use my Jutsu. It will work. The only problem is-" Akuma said.

"Naruto's brother." Itachi finished.

"Exactly." Akuma said.

"But even if he's taken care of, you'll never get that chance to use it because he is too strong. It'll take both of us to take him down. But that means that Ketsu is going to be there anyway." Itachi said.

"Don't worry about me, just stall Naruto's brother and I will do this. I'll finish him, and then we can settle things between US." Akuma said with a serious face.

"Ketsu, be careful, they are planning something, I know it." Naruto said to his brother who was beside him.

They were both breathing hard with a few bruises and cuts on their bodies. "If I know Itachi and Akuma, they are planning something smart. They used to be a two man team. They would go and capture many demon vessels. Akuma is known as the demon slayer. Beware of Itachi's eyes, never look directly into them. He'll activate his Mangekyou Sharingan which puts you in a Genjutsu spell that is almost impossible to get out of until he's done with you. It's even known to scar people's lives. Their every day's thoughts are changed because they are traumatized. Since they have been working together for so long, they know each other's strengths and weaknesses and can cover for each other. As I said before, we can't underestimate them."

Soon enough, Itachi and Akuma appeared on tree branches above them. Akuma jumped down in front of Naruto immediately engaging in a Taijutsu battle.

Itachi appeared behind Ketsu swinging his Kunai toward Ketsu's temple. Ketsu moved his head out of the way and elbowed Itachi's ribs. Itachi didn't let the air knocked of him stop him. He quickly dashed after Ketsu and caught up.

Itachi grabbed the back of Ketsu's robe and through him against a tree. Itachi then drove his Kunai through Ketsu's hand pinning him to the wood. Itachi ran off leaving Ketsu in excruciating pain as he quickly pulled the Kunai out of the wood and out of his hand. He ripped a piece of his clothing and tied it tightly to his hand attempting to stop the blood from leaking out like a water fountain. Ketsu gritted his teeth in anger and quickly dashed off after Itachi ready to kill him.

Itachi looked back and saw Ketsu running right after him. Itachi looked forward, sped up, and smiled. Mission accomplished. All he had to do now was kill Ketsu and leave Akuma to Naruto.

Naruto jumped back avoiding Akuma's swing to his face. He looked around and saw that Ketsu and Itachi were nowhere to be found. He looked back at Akuma who was now smiling. "That was your plan wasn't it? For Itachi to take care of Ketsu and distract him because we're too strong when he's by my side. You think Itachi could take care of him while you, the demon slayer, takes care of me. Do you really think that you could take me on?"

"You underestimate me Naruto. Even if you are much stronger now, there are many things that I did not teach you. Why would I reveal everything to you when I knew that one day we would have to kill you? I knew that you would go against us; after all, nobody wants to die. You would fight for your life, so I didn't teach you all I knew. All of us kept some moves of our own hidden from you so you wouldn't expect them when the time came. What I did not expect, was half of the Akatsuki to fight along with you. But it doesn't matter anymore. There are just two demon vessels left, you and Gaara. Do you remember him? Your first mission and you failed it. You couldn't even capture a simple demon vessel. We were all so disappointed. And you failed to mention that Chiyo-baa gave you a certain item; in a beige velvet bag. Yes, we know all about that. It's your fault she's dead Naruto. You failed to mention that she gave you something. We tried to find out from her personally, but she would never tell us, that was the end of her. Now she is one of Sasori's puppet collections. He has the whole family." Akuma said smiling the whole time.

Naruto's blood was boiling. He was so angry. Chiyo-baa was a person he completely trusted, even with his life. "Why did you ask me?" He asked angrily.

"Because then you would know that we were watching. You weren't that naïve Naruto. You were always smart in battle. You would lose our trust, and we couldn't risk that. That was one more step of betrayal. When you were small, I sealed the Kyubbi inside of you even deeper. But your strength grew at such a rapid pace. What could you expect? I mean, you grew up with us, training all your life, of course you would be strong. But the stronger you grew, the weaker the seal would get. Soon enough, seeing your brother near his doom was all it took to shatter the seal completely releasing your demon." Akuma said.

"Wait a minute." Naruto said realizing something. "When I turned demon, Itachi, Kisame, Sasori, and Deidara all rushed in, captured me, and took me straight back to our base. Was I being watched that time too?"

Akuma chuckled, "I'm surprised it took you this long to notice. Naruto, there was never a single moment in your life that you were alone, as I said, you could not be trusted. We had to make sure you stayed on our side. We had to take many precautions, watching you at all times were one of them."

"What?" Naruto shouted. He thought back skimming through his memories like a book. "So you knew that I had fought Garou before you assigned for me to bring him to you?"

"Of course, you had to be rid of all friendships. We simply saw Garou as a threat. He was a demon vessel, but why go capture him ourselves, when you could do it for us? That was the ultimate test. Friendship or the Akatsuki. You chose us, but you were very reluctant. You even gave him many chances to run. You passed, but you also failed." Akuma answered him.

Naruto was completely speechless. All these things he didn't know about Akatsuki. What they were hiding. He always considered them as family until he found out the truth. Naruto was glad that he was much passed that now. However, there would still be a part of him that would never be the same. Leaving the Akatsuki was a big decision that he made on his own but finding out the truth about them, that he was nothing to all of them, left a large hole in his heart. But he was now free, happier even. He had Ketsu, and that was more than enough for Naruto.

Akuma saw this moment as his chance; he quickly disappeared and appeared behind Naruto about to punch him in the head. But Naruto was too fast; he dodged Akuma's swing by ducking and he quickly dashed away from him.

"Nice try Akuma, but you won't get me." Naruto said smiling.

Akuma just smiled straight back at him. "I already did." He stared straight at Naruto's neck.

Naruto's smile faded as he felt the thin needle that had pierced through his skin. He could already feel the poison working its way through his body. He pulled the needle out and fell to the ground in pain groaning.

Akuma slowly walked toward Naruto, who was feeling more pain by the second. "So I see my plan is working after all. Of course I can't seal your demon with you at your best. But at your current state, you wont' be a problem at all. It doesn't matter how strong you are, poison's poison."

Akuma was now beside Naruto crouching down. He had his hand on Naruto chest as he said, "Sumitsuki!" He pressed down on Naruto chest knocking the air out of him. It was done, the Kyubbi was sealed, and Naruto was drugged. Naruto was now helpless, unable to defend himself, unable to do anything at all.

---

"Where's Kaji?" The Shouten leader asked Eight who had quickly returned.

"I don't know exactly how to say this…but he went with Orochimaru." Eight said very frightened. "Orochimaru was able to obtain complete control over him since he is the only Sannin remaining. Kaji has Orochimaru's blood running through his veins. That's why Orochimaru can do whatever he wants with him. He turned Kaji against me. I managed to escape and come back here. I knew it was futile to fight against them all."

Even though it was Orochimaru that had told Eight to go back, Eight changed the truth. He didn't want his leader to be even more disappointed than he already was.

The leader sighed as he said in a serious tone, "Call…Kagai and Kiran over here."

Eight hurriedly did as he was told and soon enough there were four Shouten members gathered together. Kiran, the right hand man to the leader, was already in his forties. He had a long black goatee and thick black eyebrows. He was bald on the top of his head. He had such an evil glare, that it seemed that he could kill you with a simple glance. He was very skinny and stood almost as tall as Eight. He wore his large black Shouten cloak but had his hood down so that his head was visible.

"Your greatest creation…and he's a threat to us." The leader addressed to Kagai. "Kagai, I want you to stay here at the base and wait for Haku and Saru. Keep them here and don't allow them to leave. Eight, Kiran, and I will take care of Kaji. While we're gone, I want you to think about what you did. Why this has happened. I hope that I won't have to unleash my anger out on you. Kaji has definitely something coming to him…"

"Be careful my lord. He is very strong; probably just as strong as or even stronger than Kiran. It seems you are the only one who can take him down. Remember that Orochimaru is also there and his little subordinate Sasuke." Kagai said bowing his head.

"Thank you for that piece of information Kagai. I will keep that in mind." The leader said. Then he, Kiran, and Eight dashed out of the base and into the distance after Orochimaru, Kaji, and Sasuke.

---

Akuma had Naruto who was practically unconscious in his arms as he traveled with his side of the Akatsuki back to base. They were all extremely beat up from their battle. After Capturing Naruto, Akuma told everybody to regroup. Luckily, everybody had defeated their opponents, so there was nobody to follow them. Itachi and Hinata were the only ones that were conscious and they were both preoccupied. Akuma, Sasori, Hidan, Deidara, and Kakuzu were now all dashing wearily back to extract Naruto's demon from his body.

"After sixteen years, we can finally get rid of our biggest threat." Akuma said happily.

Suddenly, the Akatsuki members stopped as they saw three figures straight in front of them.

"I'd be glad to get rid of him for you." Orochimaru said smiling deviously.

"Orochimaru! You can't take us all on!" Kakuzu said angrily.

"You may have been right if you were all fine. But you are all weak from a recent battle I can see. You are all…tired, thirsty, and weak. I also have the ultimate weapon now. Kaji, I want the boy, take care of the rest." Orochimaru said.

Akuma place Naruto on the floor a few feet away from him. "We'll never let you take him!"

Kaji didn't even speak; he simply walked forward a few feet and touched the ground looking at the five Akatsuki members. Right when Kaji touched the ground with his hands, each Akatsuki member was surrounded by a barrier of earth. The barrier looked like a large sharp tooth that covered each of them completely. So there were five large earth barriers. Kaji didn't take his hands off of the ground until after each barrier carrying an Akatsuki member sunk down underground and was buried way underneath.

"Done." Kaji said dusting his hands off.

"How did you do that?" Sasuke asked full of curiosity. "You didn't perform any hand seals at all or even say the name of the Jutsu."

"I was created automatically knowing every single Jutsu that Jiraiya, Tsunade, or Orochimaru knows. I can also create ones of my own. My creator made it so that I would never have to perform any hand seals but simply carry out the Jutsu. This would help catch my opponents off guard." Kaji said.

"Impressive." Orochimaru said. "Now go get the boy."

Kaji walked over to Naruto and picked him up and carried him on his back.

"Let's head back now." Orochimaru said dashing off towards his base with Sasuke and Kaji behind him.

---

Hinata was gasping for air as she held her sword tightly. She had to concentrate and give it her all just to dodge and block Bushi's attacks. One sword was already hard enough, but two swords were too much. She was getting too tired to keep up, and her sword was already at its end, she could do no more. She had to destroy him, and quick. She was able to learn one move, and that was all she could handle. She had to end this or she would be dead. Bushi was still the same as when the battle started. He wasn't tired, or even sweating a single drop.

"As I said, you cannot defeat me." Bushi said walking toward Hinata. He then charged and struck Hinata's one sword with his two blades. "Jiten Hasaki!" Bushi shouted spinning around and around with his swords outwards. Soon enough, he was spinning so fast that he was a tornado that left a path of destruction. Hinata had attempted to block it, but her sword merely shattered as soon as it came in contact with Bushi.

Hinata then had an idea. "Shidenissen no Jutsu!" The sky grew dark as lightning game down form the sky and stuck Bushi. But it seemed that his tornado had absorbed the lightning making him even more deadly. Now Hinata was weaponless and out of ideas.

Ada Bushi stopped spinning suddenly holding out his two swords in front of him. He threw one to Hinata and she caught it. When she grabbed the hilt, she could see that the blade had electricity running threw it. A stab to one's body would deliver a shock so strong that it would cause instant death. "Why are you helping me?" She asked.

"It's unfair for you to be unable to defend yourself. That is not my way of killing someone. They must be able to fight for themselves. And now you can." Bushi said walking towards her. "This will be the end."

"I'll defeat you here!" Hinata said swinging her sword testing its speed. It was such a fine sword, cutting through the air so swiftly.

They then each dashed toward each other gaining speed with every step. This was it, the final blow. Their swords collided and time froze for a moment as they stood there and the only thing between them was their blades.

_Poof_! The sword disappeared. Hinata gasped as her sword entered Bushi's body and electrocuted him. Bushi was bleeding from almost every orifice on his body. His ears, his eyes, his nose, his mouth, even his pores. He slowly looked at Hinata with his last dying breath.

"Why? WHY DID YOU GIVE ME THE REAL ONE? WHY DID YOU KEEP THE FAKE ONE FOR YOURSELF?" Hinata screamed. "I thought you wanted to win!"

Bushi smiled slightly. He then spoke, but very softly, almost a whisper. "I can come back to life, you can't. When I said that you were not a natural swordsman, I lied. You have more potential than I did at your age. I wouldn't want it to go to waste. You have a shot at being something great. Use your talents to fulfill your dreams. I did, and it completed me. I didn't have the heart to take your life from you. But you still must survive my self destruction, if you do, then you truly deserve that sword that you hold right there. It can be a curse or a blessing…use it wisely. I wish you the best."

A tear fell from Hinata's left eye as she looked at Bushi's sword in her hands.

"Once you pull that sword out of me, then the explosion will come…good-bye Hinata…" Bushi said as he spoke his last words and closed his eyes.

Hinata quickly pulled her new sword out of Bushi's limp body and escaped the explosion. She looked at the crater it had caused and then looked back at the sword. Bushi's death had an impact on her. What if Naruto was right? She thought that she was fine being a tool, but what if she wasn't? She didn't really want to spend her life living under someone else. She wanted to be free, to be her own boss…

---

Itachi was on the floor, unconscious, and Ketsu was close to death. He had won the battle, and had to get medical attention quick, or he would soon perish.

"I'm leaving you alive, not because I don't have the heart to kill you, but because I don't think that you are worth it. What a waste you are, a piece of trash. I should end your life right here, but I think my brother deserves that opportunity." Ketsu said leaving Itachi to look for his brother.

Naruto was nowhere to be found, and Ketsu didn't have much time. He knew that Naruto had lost, somehow, Akuma had beat Naruto and taken him.

"Naruto, I swear that I will do whatever I can to get you back, even if it's the last thing I do. I will see you again brother." Ketsu said dashing off to the nearest village.

---

Six hours had passed, and Orochimaru was back at his hideout with Kaji, Sasuke, and Naruto. The poison seemed to be wearing off, but he was still weak from everything that had happened. Naruto was also tied up in chains. He couldn't move a finger.

"It seems you have finally woken up." Orochimaru smiled at Naruto. "Don't worry, once I have what I want, you can be free from all this pain."

BOOM! One of the four walls to the hideout crumpled as the leader of The Shouten walked in followed by Kiran and Eight.

"Kaji, I'm truly disappointed." The leader said.

"Who might you be?" Orochimaru asked the leader.

"That is none of your concern. I'm here because Kaji has betrayed us, and he will die here." The leader said stepping forward.

"So I see, you are his leader." Orochimaru said talking about Eight.

"I will-" The leader of The Shouten stopped as he faced Naruto. "I didn't expect to see you so soon…Naruto. You've grown into a man…"

"Who…are you?" Naruto asked.

The leader took down his hood for all to see. He then took his cloak off and let it fall to the floor revealing the tight black suit that everybody from the Shouten wore.

Orochimaru gasped. "Impossible! How can it be?"

Naruto's eyes widened. His vision was blurry, but he could see who it was.

"Kaji, I'm sorry that your life was so short, but you are a threat to us, so you will die here right now." The leader said. "Naruto, rise."

---

Akuma stood there; he was still trying to figure out what had happened. More importantly, he was trying to figure out a way to escape. His oxygen was running out.

He did the only thing he could do. He gathered his remaining chakra to his fists and began pounding on the earth walls. Each strike would dent the wall more and more. Finally, he reached through to Deidara who was unconscious.

"Deidara!" He shouted waking him up. "You can blow a hole to the top."

"Hmm…yeah you're right yeah." Deidara reached into his pocket and took out a small ball of clay. In his palms Deidara had a mouth which then chewed the ball of clay. "Watch it." He said as he put his hands to the earth ceiling. BOOM! It exploded revealing light, allowing oxygen to come in.

The Akatsuki members came out and stood up on regular ground after six hours.

"We have to get Naruto back…" Akuma said.

"Good, we can help. How about a permanent truce?" Itachi said as his side of the Akatsuki appeared.

Akuma smiled as he shook hands with his old partner joining the two groups.

---

The leader lifted up his arm in Naruto's general direction. Naruto's body obeyed. He stood up and had no control over his body whatsoever.

"So I see that somebody has sealed it. Don't worry, I will break that seal. Kyubbi, come out." The leader said.

Suddenly, Naruto felt his body being overwhelmed with red demon chakra. The Kyubbi was taking over, no, that man was taking over. Naruto ripped through the chains as if they were paper. His fangs grew as well as his nails, his eyes turned red and the Kyubbi chakra surrounded him completely. He had two tails of red chakra.

"How can this be?" Orochimaru was still amazed.

The leader then moved his hand toward Kaji. Naruto followed, he disappeared and reappeared above Kaji landing on his shoulders ripping his two arms off.

Kaji screamed in pain as blood gushed out. Naruto jumped from his shoulders to the ground punching a hole through Kaji's chest. He pulled his hand out and let Kaji fall to the floor dead to lie in his own puddle of blood.

"Sasuke, we cannot be caught here in the end, we must go now!" Orochimaru shouted in a hurry as he quickly and Sasuke quickly escaped as the Shouten were busy with Kaji and Naruto.

The leader of the Shouten then said, "Release."

The Kyubbi's chakra disappeared in an instant and Naruto fell to the ground still weakened. The poison was gone from his body because of the chakra. His vision was clear now as well.

Upon seeing the leader of The Shouten, a painful memory suddenly visited Naruto's mind.

---

"You look so much like your father Naruto…" Naomi said.

---

Naruto saw an exact image of himself as he looked at the man that was now walking away from the hideout. He was too weak to stand, his eyes grew heavy. He simply said, "Father, I've found you, I won't rest until I find you again…I now know what I must do." and fell into a deep sleep.

The leader of The Shouten put his cloak back on once again covering his whole body from head to toe. "Our work is done here, let us go."

"But my lord, what about the Kyubbi boy?" Kiran asked.

"I did not expect to see him so soon, there is still much I have to accomplish here, I do not need him just yet. We can wait. But yes, eventually I will need him, but taking him now will render useless. Let us go."

The three Shouten members were stopped in their tracks as they saw ten people outside waiting for them.

"Going somewhere?" Akuma asked. "I don't think so."

The Akatsuki was reunited, and even though most of them were tired out, there were ten of them, and three of The Shouten.

"It seems we have no choice but to fight." Kiran said.

"Ten against three? This is going to be really fun." Eight said grinning as he popped his knuckles.

"So it would seem." The leader said.

Akuma and Kiran's eyes met. "It's been a long time, hasn't it brother?" Akuma asked.

"You were always the foolish one. Don't think for a second that I will spare your life Akuma. You still have much too learn, and you were always a disgrace to our family name." Kiran said

"The same here brother, the same here." Akuma said.


	20. The Raging Battle of Elites

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Chapter Twenty: The Raging Battle of Elites

---

"I'm sick and tired of this crap!" Kiran shouted as he stood up abruptly from the dinner table. They were a family of three: Going from oldest to youngest there was the father of the family whose name was Asuran, Kiran, the oldest son who was twenty-four years old, and Akuma, the youngest who was eighteen years old. They were all that was left of the Wushin clan. "All we do is lead peaceful lives and do nothing! I can't stand it anymore!"

"Calm yourself Kiran. Our clan is like a fragile plant. Tend to it kindly giving it proper sunlight and water and it will grow. There is not much of our clan left, but you know why that is. The rest of our clan died along with the Amatari clan. At least we have three survivors, they have none. Our reign of destruction has finally come to an end. It's opened my eyes to a whole new light, can't you see what we were doing was wrong? That's why we are leading peaceful lives, to try and finish our lives the way they were meant to be lived." Asuran explained to both his sons.

"No father, you have it all wrong. It was all just a bump in the road. Can't you see this as a sign, the Amatari clan is now gone, but ours is still alive, let us rebuild it, and begin our conquest again!" Kiran said clenching his fist.

"There will always be an opposing force like there was this time. It's not a sign to fight more; it's a sign to correct our lives." Asuran argued.

"If there is an opposing force then we'll just crush it! You can't tell me that you didn't enjoy ruling over land and conquering it. We just have to try harder and get better. Akuma speak up, if you never speak your mind, then you'll always be the invisible one." Kiran said.

"I agree with Kiran dad. I really think we can build up our clan and begin conquering again. We were given great potential with great strength. What use is it if we don't fight?" Akuma asked.

"I will not allow you to do this under the name of the Wushin clan!!!" Asuran screamed breaking the dinner table in half with his fist.

"That's fine dad, because starting today, I'm leaving this clan. There's nothing left anyways. I'm going to do what I need to gain more power, and then you'll see." Kiran said. "you're the head of our clan, so kick me out I don't care, I'm gone anyways."

"Where are you going to go you fool?" Asuran asked. "You don't have anywhere to stay!"

"I DON'T CARE, ANYWHERE IS BETTER THAN THIS SHITHOLE!" Kiran shouted exiting the house.

"Kiran wait!" Asuma said as he chased out after him. "Kiran, let me come with you!"

"No Akuma, you're not strong enough to follow behind me. You were always the weak one of our clan, you have the least talent of everyone. But even so, your duty remains with our father. Despite what we think, there is truth in his words. Care for him, I know you're strong enough to protect you two. When he's gone, then you're all that's left. Don't' disappoint dad, I don't think he can bear to lose his last son, his last hope." Kiran said without looking back.

"Kiran…"

"Yeah?" Kiran asked stopping for a moment.

"I hate you." Akuma said angrily.

Kiran was silent for a moment then said, "I know…" and he walked off into the night.

**One Year Later…**

Akuma was traveling on the path through the forest when suddenly two people in red and black cloaks appeared before him. One man had a pale face and resembled a snake. The other man had braids in his hair and was large with a scarf looking cloth over his mouth.

Akuma had just journeyed to a village and destroyed it not leaving a single person alive. He wanted to begin his quest of destruction. "Who are you?" Akuma asked the two people.

"My name is Orochimaru and this is Sasori." The pale man said pointing to himself and his partner. "We are from an organization called the Akatsuki; we are currently looking for members. We looked you up in the bingo book and you're way up there in the S-ranks along with us. How old are you?"

"Nineteen." Akuma said proudly.

"Interesting, would you care to join?" Sasori asked.

"No thanks, I have a goal of my own to fulfill." Akuma said attempting to walk past them.

Instead they walked alongside of him for a little while until Orochimaru asked, "And what is that?"

"I want to rule over lands, leaving a path of destruction everywhere I go. I want villages; no countries to fear my name and abandon their homes if I'm anywhere near them." Akuma said with a smile.

Orochimaru simply smiled back saying, "Then we've come to the right person, welcome to the Akatsuki."

---

"Master, allow me to take on one enemy for this battle, I must end it once and for all with my brother." Kiran said awaiting the Leader's approval.

"You may do that, I think we'll manage to hold them off until you can settle things between yourselves. Kiran, don't disappoint me, even if he is your brother, remember, you belong to me, you belong to the Shouten, don't spare his life." The Leader said.

Kiran bowed and took off quickly into the forest with his little brother Akuma following closely behind him.

"But my lord, that leaves nine for two people. They clearly have us out numbered!" Eight complained pointing to his opponents.

"Do not fret Eight. You are not weak or in weak condition like they are, just remain calm and fight. If you are so worried, then you can take three of them, and I'll take six of them." The Leader explained.

"Are you sure you can take that many on all by yourself?" Eight asked.

"Are you saying your faith in me has been shattered?"

"NO! Of course not. Please forgive my insolence, very well, I will take three then." Eight said. "Alright, I've made up my mind."

Eight charged at Zetsu flying through the air kicking him back into many trees. He had obviously chosen one of his three opponents. Hinata and Itachi both went after Eight who was now chasing after Zetsu.

Mihniopaksu, Kisame, Kakuzu, Sasori, Deidara, and Hidan were left to fight the leader of The Shouten.

---

Kiran and Akuma had finally stopped running and were now facing each other intently.

"One question before we begin," Kiran started.

"What would that be?" Akuma asked.

"What has become of our father?" Kiran asked.

Akuma smiled. "Kiran, I'm glad you asked. After you left, I stood by him day by day, each day training myself only stopping to eat and barely sleep. Our father was already heart broken to lose our entire clan, after you left, I think he just snapped. He practically starved himself, he wouldn't sleep, and me training myself to get stronger just wasn't helping. I could tell he was suffering, so I decided to end his miserable life. When I had decided to fight him, he thought I was insane, and you know what? Maybe I am insane. He put up a good fight, but the training I had put myself through really worked in the end. I killed him, I ended his life, and I did it proudly as well. I've spent so many years improving myself, that I am no longer the one without talent. You will find brother that I have gotten much better, I have even surpassed you. I was always the third wheel, you were the prodigal son, and I couldn't stand it. So when you left us for good that was the last straw. I'm ready to kill you without hesitation; you put us all in hell."

Kiran chuckled. "Akuma, it doesn't matter how much stronger you have gotten, you will never be able to beat me. You and I, our fighting skills are on completely different levels. You're right; I was the prodigal son, that's why I have achieved where I am right now. You will never become as strong as me; your life will end here. I know it was hard on dad and you to leave, but I made the right decision. The Shouten granted me what I have wanted. We are so close to gaining ultimate power, after we have done that, then we can begin our conquer over the land."

"Haretsu no Jutsu!" Kiran shouted forming a few hand seals quickly. BOOM! An explosion in mid-air occurred on the ground Akuma was standing on. He managed to escape unharmed to the top of a nearby tree.

BOOM, the explosions continued. This time the branch Akuma was standing on. He simply jumped to a different tree. BOOM, once again, this time the whole tree exploded, sending sharp shards of bark flying in all directions.

Akuma formed a few hand seals as well shouting, "Souran no Jutsu!" He now had control of every single wood shard from the exploding tree. He directed them all to his opponent.

The wood shards cut through the air like speeding bullets straight for Kiran who still had his hands connected. BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM! Hundreds of explosions occurred as each wood shard blew up.

Akuma jumped back to the ground panting from running around. He observed Kiran's position, his stance, his hand seal that he had connected. "That's it!" Akuma whispered to himself. "If I break the hand seal then the explosions will stop, all I have to do is get close enough to hit him and he'll move by himself. But the closer I move, the more accuracy he will have. It's a risk, what can I do in this position?"

BOOM! Akuma barely managed to escape the explosion that had just come because it had caught him off guard. "You didn't think I was going to let you stand there did you?" Kiran asked smiling. "This is all too easy. You're already tired and I haven't even broken a sweat. Is this the power that you spoke of?"

Akuma then whipped out a kunai and thrust it at Kiran. He missed terribly and the kunai struck the large branch Kiran was standing on and stuck there. Akuma then ran under Kiran avoiding the explosions that were happening all around him. Akuma carefully ran around Kiran at a distance that was very far. He ran up and down but all the time he was running large circles around his opponent. Finally Kiran saw it, the clear string that was connected to the kunai and Akuma's hand. Akuma had been running around Kiran dragging the string allowing it to surround him. All he had to do was tighten the grip on the string and it would close in around Kiran and cut him.

Kiran let go of his hand seal and managed to get away by using Kawarimi replacing his body with a tree trunk. Akuma smiled, he had successfully completed what he was trying to do all this time. All he needed was two seconds to execute his plan. The problem was the explosions. Now, Kiran would have to perform the hand seals all over again and Akuma was already able to carry out his battle plan.

Suddenly, two large trees fell each where Kiran was supposed to be standing. Instead he jumped back a few feet dodging them as they impacted with the ground. After they had fallen, Kiran jumped up on top of the trees and said, "I've got the higher ground brother!"

"AYATSURI NO JUTSU!" Akuma screamed as he formed many hand seals running up to the trees that were now parallel to the ground. He place his right hand on the tree and BAM! The next moment Kiran was in a large wooden cage made from the trees.

"Wood manipulation eh?" Kiran asked from inside the cage. "So you really have improved your skills. Elemental manipulation takes years and years of training to acquire. And with your little talent, I wasn't sure you were ever going to be able to do it. How long has it been Akuma? How long has it been since I left?"

"Kiran, it has been sixteen years. If you're impressed with wood manipulation, then be proud brother, because it doesn't stop here. I learned elemental manipulation within the first two years after you had left. I haven't stopped training." Akuma said. "As for your explosion technique, I can do that as well; Souran no Jutsu."

---

"If you are going to fight me, it is proper to at least know who I am." The leader of The Shouten said removing his cloak showing his tight black suit. His blond hair and blue eyes seemed to shine with the sun.

"You are, the fourth Hokage of Konoha!" Kisame shouted amazed and speechless.

"That type of information is not open for discussion, I will simply tell you my name." The Fourth appeared behind Mihniopaksu shoving his hand through his chest and heart. Mihniopaksu fell to the ground dead. "My name is Kyu. Remember it well."

Before anybody could do a single thing, Kyu formed a few hand seals and said calmly, "Kaiaku no Jutsu." The next thing that happened, every person that was fighting Kyu fell to the ground clutching their stomach in pain.

Kyu smiled and listened to the screaming of his five opponents. "That sound is music to my ears. I've felt that pain before and I can tell you right now, it's no picnic. What is happening inside you is basically, a deterioration of your insides. There's no way to get out of the pain except to commit suicide. Sad isn't it? The Akatsuki, a famous organization composed of S rank criminals and you can't even last three seconds against me. I suppose I have yet to fight a good battle."

---

Zetsu was already dead, Hinata and Itachi were both weakened. They were caught off guard with Eight's ability to shape shift any part of his body.

"Hinata-san, do not worry, we can take this guy out. He is only one person. We have to get back to the others. I can feel everybody's power weakening. Akuma is hanging on, but I fear that he will not survive much longer. We must beat him and hurry back to aid everyone." Itachi said panting. "KATON: RYUUKA NO JUSTU!"

Suddenly, a gigantic flame appeared from Itachi's mouth and engulfed Eight completely. The attack held for almost thirty seconds. Hinata and Itachi both gasped to see Eight alive after taking that hit full on.

Eight's skin was completely melted off, only his eye balls and his muscle was seen along with his metal skeleton. "Pity that you had to see me like this." Eight said sadly progressing toward his opponents.

"Bushi…I will not let you down. It can't end here!" Hinata said as she rushed at Eight with her sword ready to strike. "Bushi, give me your strength, give me your courage, give me your spirit! Bushi no Jutsu!"

Hinata's sword glowed with an aura of a light orange as she cut Eight's body in half at the waist. Eight fell to the floor in two pieces, his upper body and his legs. Hinata fell to the floor unconscious from having used her new strongest move. Itachi rushed to Hinata and awoke her. They both fled the scene to aid the other Akatsuki members.

---

The wooden cage Akuma had locked Kiran in exploded. Akuma smiled as he witnessed his brother flee from the broken cage without his left arm bleeding constantly. "Now who's hurt brother?" Akuma asked Kiran chuckling.

Suddenly Kiran appeared in front of Akuma stabbing him with a large sharp shard of wood. He took his weapon out of Akuma's chest and reinserted it into his stomach. Kiran repeated the stabbing process over and over and over again. Akuma was unable to move, his body completely paralyzed and full of new pains entering his body as Kiran impaled him with the shard of wood.

Then Akuma's legs exploded, then his arms, and Akuma was on the ground as blood gushed from his mouth.

"It's sad isn't it Akuma; How much pain can come from a Genjutsu." Kiran said.

Akuma gasped as he returned back to normal releasing his mind from the horror that he awoke from. He looked around and Kiran was nowhere to be seen. Again, he felt the same pain as the Genjutsu he was just in. He felt it over and over again but he could not see anything or any blood. Akuma put his hands together and shouted, "KAI!"

He smiled as he looked around to locate Kiran. "A Genjutsu after another Genjutsu huh? Clever. I didn't think you were that smart." Akuma said still looking around.

However he didn't have to look for long because his opponent appeared a few feet in front of him. "This is a little test." Akuma stated forming quick hand seals. "Let's hope you can pass it."

Suddenly, it began to rain. It was only a light drizzle, but the rain drops were thick. They didn't splatter when the hit the ground, instead, they simply lay there, a small sphere of water. After a few minutes, the drizzling stopped, and the forest was full of raindrops everywhere: The ground, the trees, the leaves, even on Kiran himself.

"Was that it?" Kiran asked.

"My brother, is that ever it? Jutsu's are never how they seem at first. I told you didn't, I? This is a test, to see if you can match up to my level. This may be a bit difficult to get away from though." Akuma said smiling the whole time he spoke. He put his hands together and said, "Kai."

Just then, a raindrop nearby exploded and disappeared. Kiran looked at his arm and noticed that it was bleeding. Another raindrop erupted this time slicing Kiran's left cheek.

"What is that?!" Kiran asked.

"Those drops are not made of water at all. They are made of hundreds of tiny needles glazed with a poison that goes directly into your bloodstream and ruptures your heart in a matter of hours. However, after getting hit with thousands of drops, you'll be dead even before the poison can reach it. I can make anyone explode at any time I want. Or I can make all of them explode at the same time. The explosion is the factor that gives the needles the momentum to pierce the skin. It's simply my chakra that controls them towards my opponent. That's the reason they won't hit me. This is your test, good luck brother."

BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM!!! Kiran heard explosions everywhere but he didn't wait long enough to see where they were going. He began to attempt to dodge them, but his attempt was completely futile. The needles pierced his sleeves and cut up his arms. Everywhere Kiran moved there would be a raindrop and it would explode cutting him somewhere on his body. Soon enough his cloak was full of holes and his body full of scrapes.

Kiran then stopped moving, he had his head down to the ground and his eyes closed. He seemed to be a peaceful state despite the new cuts he was getting by the second. He slowly removed his Shouten cloak to reveal the tight black armor that was all cut up. He removed that as well. His muscular body was barely visible through the dripping blood all over him.

"That's all you have Kiran? That is the limit of our so called Wushin clan?" Akuma asked finally stopping the attacks. There were still thousands of raindrops left all around the forest. "Very well, I'll make this easy on you then. This will be an all or nothing. Supposing you do dodge this, you will die from the poison anyways. It wouldn't surprise me if it took just five minutes for you to drop down to your death. By the way, one thing you should know, nobody has ever survived my technique, including…our father. Goodbye brother."

At those last two sentences, Kiran lifted his head in fury. His sweat fell from his chin mixed with his blood. "You are not worthy of witnessing the limit of our clan; you who are so feeble and weak. Do not even think for a second you will win. Hit me with everything you've got, I'll take it all. Chakra Kankaku!"

Kiran's eyes went to the back of his head so that only white was visible. He stood tall, ready to take on Akuma's attack. BOOM! The raindrops all exploded, heading towards Kiran at an incredible speed.

Kiran didn't get hit once. The needles all gathered to one spot in front of him forming what looked like a huge water drop the size of Kiran's body. The drop then began to take form, the form of Kiran himself. He had made a Bunshin from the needles that were supposed to attack him.

"How is that possible?" Akuma asked?

My Jutsu allows me to see near chakra and control its flow. It's one of the secrets that belongs to only our blood limit. I see you have not figured that out yet based on your surprise. I was able to make a Bunshin with your needles and I can control him as well. As I said, don't even think for a SECOND, you will win." Kiran explained.

"It appears you don't understand brother, that was merely my first test, and you won't be breathing after a few more minutes. How will you manage to kill me with just one Bunshin?" Akuma asked.

"One Bunshin is more than enough!" Kiran said as his clone rushed forward at Akuma.

Once close enough, Akuma attempted to punch the Bunshin's face, but the needles dispersed and reformed behind Akuma grabbing him from behind not allowing him to move.

"It's like punching water, you can't hurt it. It can only hurt you. It can take a solid form like rock whenever I want it to, or become as flexible as water if I desire." Kiran said walking towards Akuma.

"Kiran, do not believe I am so foolish." Akuma said as he touched the Bunshin's arms and transferred chakra to them. They then fell like water to the ground. Akuma jumped back so he could avoid close contact with his two opponents. "You and I both know that all I have to do to mess up your Bunshin is to transfer chakra into it. That messes up the chakra flow and doesn't allow your Bunshin to stay together in the shape you want it to. So far, you have a useless clone, and you are almost dead. I on the other hand, hardly even have a scratch."

"How's this for a scratch?" Kiran asked as another clone appeared behind punching him with full force in the face. Akuma flew into a nearby tree and then fell to the ground.

"So I see," Akuma stated looking around. "Two clones then huh? I guess I'll have to end this fast then." He reached into his Akatsuki cloak and pulled out two handfuls of kunai. Akuma threw the first one he had directly at the nearest Kiran. In mid-air, the kunai transformed into a large spinning fuma-shuriken. Kiran was able to dodge it and the fuma-shuriken ended up getting stuck in a tree behind them all. The same thing occurred with every single kunai; it would transform into a fuma-shuriken and get stuck in a different tree each time. Soon enough, Akuma was out of weapons and he was panting.

"Your final attempt to finish us off was completely useless Akuma. I am disappointed in you." Kiran said with a smirk. But that smirk soon faded as soon as he saw that Akuma was holding on to a metallic string in each hand. It appeared that each fuma-shuriken was connected and that they formed an enclosed circular perimeter around all three Kirans.

Akuma was holding the end of both strings closing the perimeter around his opponents. "I can guarantee you brother, that you will not escape this Jutsu." Akuma said. Before anything else could be done, fifteen Bunshins of Akuma appeared; each one standing on a fuma-shuriken facing inwards to Kiran.

Akuma crossed both the ends of the strings in his hands and pulled so that the shurikens flew inwards towards the three enemies. Everyone of the Bunshin's jumped up into the air throwing down kunai with an explosive tag.

BOOM! The huge explosion ended leaving the real Kiran by himself in the middle completely full of blood. His body was surrounded by metallic wires going around and around him so he would not be able to move a single limb. All sixteen Akuma's held a metallic end of the string that led to Kiran's body.

"All we have to do brother is pull, and you will be diced into fifty pieces of fresh guts." Akuma said. I noticed that your bunshins tried to escape by jumping up into mid air; the most obvious way of avoiding this technique, but I had my clones waiting above in the air for them. Your needle clone was easily taken care of in the explosion; one thing you don't know about those needles is that they burn easily. That leaves you now, in the middle, with nothing else to do, except die."

"Ha, ha, ha, ha." Kiran laughed. "So you became strong alter all brother. That makes me proud. I can finally show you what it means, so be a Wushin clan member. I have reached the limit of our power, I have reached what our ancestors and our dead clan members have trained their whole lives to reach. Now it's time to show you brother, what I really am."

"You'll be dead before you can try anything!" Akuma shouted as he held the end of the string in his left hand and bit his right thumb. He then formed one-handed hand seals pounding his hand into the ground. "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"

A large black sword appeared in Akuma's right hand. The handle was about two feet long, and the sword was about nine feet long altogether. This black sword was extremely sharp and quite unique. It had a large Yellow eye on it at the bottom of the blade and it had a black slit for a pupil.

"This sword is my secret weapon. I have only used it on demons, up until now. This sword was made from a demon, it was sealed inside here. You should feel honored brother, because I'm taking this battle seriously. Whatever you have in store for me, will never be able to be witnessed by anyone again. You're tied down, and you have no weapon, you're about to die from poisoning, so how are you going to defend yourself?" Akuma asked.

"You don't seem to understand Akuma, there is nothing you can do at this point that will save you." Kiran said.

"You are delusional! You are in no position to say that and yet you still do. That simply proves you are insane, nothing more. Finally, our two paths have met, we fought, but only one of us can be victorious, and you are not that person." Akuma said walking nearer to Kiran.

"Well then, I suppose if you don't think I'm going to win, then I should give it all that I've got. I can sense the chakra level of that sword, but it still won't be enough. Your demise will take less than two minutes. Are you ready Akuma?" Kiran asked.

"Ready Kiran."

"Good, because here goes everything." Kiran said.

---

Itachi and Hinata finally reached the battle grounds of Kiran and Akuma. They both were panting because they both had traveled farther than expected.

"It seems that they went out quite far." Itachi said looking around.

"Oh no!" Hinata screamed as she rushed to Akuma's dead body. His body was pinned to the tree trunk with his sword. The blade had impaled his chest and stuck him just so that his feet didn't touch the ground. His head lay facing down and blood slowly dripped down his cloak and onto the floor.

Just before Hinata could pull out the sword Itachi stopped her, tackling her to the ground. "Don't touch that Hinata! That sword is actually the eight-tailed demon sealed into a blade. Akuma was known as the demon-hunter, because he was the only one who had such a skill. He sealed the demon into that sword and he is the only one who can wield it. Just by grabbing the handle, you will release the demon from its state and we are not able to handle it alone. We must burn this tree along with Akuma and his sword. This forest reeks of blood, I can smell it everywhere. We must get back and help the others; hopefully it is not too late for them." Itachi said. With his fire Jutsu, he incinerated Akuma and his sword, the Akatsuki's leader was gone.

"Itachi, everything is going wrong!" Hinata shouted as they began to head towards the remaining five Akatsuki members. "Zetsu and Akuma are gone; who else knows can be dead over there. If Akuma's brother was able to kill him, then I can't imagine how strong his leader is. He is beyond any of our levels. If they all fail, how can we possibly escape? I hope they are alright. Our plans have been drastically changed…"

"That is true, but one thing does not differ, and that is that we stay together as a team. We will not abandon the remaining members we have. Are you ready to give your life in this next battle?" Itachi asked.

"I am always ready." Hinata said as she gripped her sword tighter.

---

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" Mihniopaksu shouted. _BOOM_!!! An enormous boar appeared swallowing Kyu up completely. "This will give us time to fix this." He groaned as he clutched his stomach. "Chiyu no Jutsu!"

His pain had gone away, and he began healing his fellow teammates as the boar stood waiting for a command. "This is simply a temporary pain reliever for all of us. We need to get back to the base and figure out how to stop this technique. I don't think it is wise to fight-"

Suddenly, the large boar seemed to implode into a black hole, Kyu was standing there, without a single scratch on him, and he was smiling. "Don't even joke." He said.

It was at that moment when Kiran appeared without his cloak or his tight vest. He didn't seem to have much of a scratch anymore, he didn't have a single cut but he did have a few bruises on his body. He held Eight's legs in one arm and his upper body in the other. "He's bleeding badly my lord. I don't think he'll last much longer. It seems we have to get him back to Kagai before it's too late."

"Very well Kiran, let us depart from here. It seems you had more trouble then I expected. Did you have to use your ability?" Kyu asked.

"Yes my lord, I actually did. It seems that my brother was not too far off from unlocking it as well. I don't think I could have won without it. One thing is for sure, he may be dead, but I acknowledge him as a worthy opponent. He was stronger than me and smarter in battle as well. But in the end he stood no chance. I'm glad that our paths crossed and we were able to settle things once and for all. Now we must go." Kiran said.

With that, the three Shouten members left the forest traveling at a fast pace back to the base. The Akatsuki members did the same as soon as Itachi and Hinata had caught up with them. They took Naruto along so they could extract the Kyubbi while he was drugged.

---

"I…never knew, you could be so…strong…" Saru said as he fell to his knees of exhaustion. "You are young like me, yet you are way beyond my level. How?"

"As I said before, I have been in the Shouten for four years now. What good would I be to them if I wasn't skilled? You have not even begun to see half the extent of my power Saru. The leader is so much stronger than me, that he could take me out in under five seconds. I'm telling you now, leave this place. It's all you can depend on. Once you devote your life to him, there's no going back." Haku said.

"I already have." Saru whispered softly. "I need to see my brother again, no matter what."

"We need to do something then, we need some kind of leverage so that he will revive both of them." Haku said. "We need…Naruto."

"Naruto? Isn't that the teenager boy who is an S class criminal?" Saru asked.

"He is. Without Naruto, our leader's plans will be completely ruined. If we could somehow get a hold of Naruto…Let's go back to the base for now, I'll think of something later." Haku said.

When they arrived, Eight, Kiran, Kagai, and Kyu were all waiting for them. This was the first time Saru had seen Kiran without a cloak. Kyu was still completely covered.

"But my lord, Naruto is in the hands of the Akatsuki! What will you do if they extract the Kyubbi?" Kiran asked as Saru and Haku walked in.

"Where were you two?" Kagai asked.

"We went out for a little training." Haku said as him and Saru both took a seat.

"Where is the Akatsuki base?" Kyu asked.

"I know where it is." Haku spoke up. "I found them outside it one morning and luckily I escaped unspotted."

"Very well," Kyu commended. "Then I sill send you two back out to go get Naruto from them. We cannot risk them extracting his demon; I need it if I ever want to restore my power again. Bring Naruto back here, alive." Kyu dismissed Haku and Saru from his sight as they traveled quickly to the Akatsuki's base.

"Why does he need the Kyubbi so bad?" Saru asked Haku.

"As I've said hundreds of times, all will be revealed in good time. Don't think that you can be trusted automatically by simply entering the Shouten. You have to earn our leader's trust just like I did." Haku answered.

"How can I do that?"

"The more obedient you are to him, the faster he will trust you. He mostly bases his trust on strength, so with time, you will get stronger, and more secrets now will be eventually revealed to you. That is why our leader trusts Kiran the most, because Kiran surpasses all our strengths by far." Haku said. "As for me, I am strong enough to know enough, and that's all that matters. Even if you tried escaping, he would kill you, but he doesn't want to risk you telling others." Haku explained.

"Wow…I always thought that Eight was stronger than everyone." Saru said.

"Not a chance. He is third strongest in our clan but not even if we all teamed up together could we defeat Kiran. His blood limit allows him to access a form beyond a human level. He achieved this after years of training with our leader, and even then, he still cannot put a scratch on him. With time, you will get much stronger, and much faster as well. Do not worry about this whole trust issue; soon, you will know everything." Haku said as they finally arrived at the Akatsuki base. "We must get Naruto and go, we cannot afford for them to follow us so we must devise a plan."

A/N: mmm, what do I say? I've been away for a long time. I think eight months lol. Well I can't promise other chapters will be coming out soon now that I'm writing again. But I really do plan on finishing the series sometime. There are still a few more chapters to go so hang in there. Um I might have lost all my readers already but I just want to let those know that I really am sorry. If you've forgotten about what's going on, then just go back and read the chapters. Until next time!


	21. Blades versus Ice

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Chapter twenty one: Blades versus Ice

"It is possible to obtain Naruto without a fight. We simply have to plan for it correctly. The most important things we have to watch out for, is that they do not follow us back to the base or we'll be in real trouble. So here's the plan: We will infiltrate the base and you will automatically use you blood limit while I on the other hand, will grab Naruto fighting as little as possible. You will be the main distraction. Don't consider this a fight, because if it was, then death would be involved. Our goal here is to get Naruto and to escape safely, not to wage a war. Once I have Naruto, we will both leave the base and split off into two different directions. I will place Naruto's body where we just fought a few hours ago, and you will take a huge detour and pick him up and drop him off behind a boulder exactly two miles north of that. Then you must go straight to the base. Anybody following you after that amount of time will be killed off if they're dumb enough to venture inside our base. I will take an even longer detour and head for that boulder where I will pick Naruto up and take a second detour and head back to the base after that." Haku explained. "This plan is very crucial so don't mess it up or our leader will kill you."

"Are you sure you can outrun them for that long?" Saru asked.

"I've had years of experience of doing this Saru, please do not question my plan. I can outrun them for weeks if I really needed to. But the Akatsuki is in very bad condition at this current point in time. So chances are they are not trying to extract Naruto's demon just yet. That will make it even easier on us, don't forget this plan and make sure you drop Naruto's body off exactly where I told you. Are you sure you can outrun them?" Haku asked.

Saru smiled, "I'm sure. I've practiced my speed and endurance for so long that I have no doubts about this."

"Very well then, let's begin. Go!" Haku shouted as they both ran into the Akatsuki's base. "It's probably unguarded because they had no time to set up any traps after they got back." Haku explained.

Sure enough, there was the Akatsuki; all of them had been rid of Kyu's Jutsu that he had placed on them. However they were all completely exhausted and were discussing the future of their organization.

"Akuma was our leader, but he was taken out completely!" Itachi said. "Listen, I know we are an organization composed of S rank criminals, but that other organization is definitely something else. They can't be human."

"How can it be that Akuma was taken down so easily?" Hidan asked with a worried tone.

"We don't know but what Itachi says is true. Akuma was found pinned to a tree trunk with his very own sword. The ten of us only fought three of them, and we had two casualties. The shape shifter that we fought was extremely skilled as well. I couldn't have taken him out without Itachi." Hinata confirmed.

"The important issues at hand are: first we must get ourselves in place again. Just because the other organization is stronger than us, doesn't mean that we can't continue our plans." Kisame began.

"He's right." Kakuzu agreed. "We need to get organized, and we do that by selecting a new leader; someone with experience."

"I believe I can fill that part out." Sasori jumped in. "I have always been the best among us."

"Don't even try to say that!" Mihniopaksu shouted. "You are probably among the worst. You only have experience but you lack intelligence and skill. I believe Itachi should lead us."

The rest of the Akatsuki members began to agree.

Itachi shook his head in disagreement saying, "No, I cannot lead us. My sharingan is not what it used to be."

"Itachi, this is not your choice, if you are elected then you must take Akuma's place." Hinata said.

"She's right." Kisame replied after.

"Very well, I will-" Itachi was interrupted as Haku and Saru jumped inside.

"Sorry to rain on your little dispute but we came here for Naruto." Haku said.

"The hell you'll take him I'll-" Hidan stopped speaking as a small ball of light went through his chest and sent him to his knees in pain screaming.

"This isn't a game; you are in no positions to refuse. You may have us out numbered but we have you not only out skilled but we are not tired as well." Saru said very seriously creating another light ball in each of his rocky hands.

Haku had no problem slipping out of the way between the small battle that was occurring. He also had no trouble finding the unconscious Naruto. Once obtained, Haku ran back and shouted, "Saru! I have him let's go!"

Haku exited the base and Saru followed suit taking a different direction this time.

"It's ok!" Itachi said to all the other Akatsuki members. "Let them go, it's a trap for us anyways. They are heading back to their base and we can't risk our lives for the Kyubbi. We will obtain its power some other time. For now we must concentrate on resting and setting up traps for the entrance to the base."

---

Haku picked up Naruto from behind the boulder just like the plan had said. In a way he was proud of Saru for being able to follow orders correctly on such short notice. Naruto on the other hand, was beginning to wake up. Haku laid him down on the ground so Naruto could catch his breath and figure out what was going on.

Naruto opened his eyes and looked around. After finally noticing Haku he asked, "Who are you?"

"My name is Haku and I am here to rescue you." Haku lied. "I saved your life from the Akatsuki. You should be grateful. Your body is still too weak to move so I'll be carrying you from here on. I just thought you might want to rest so that's why I stopped."

"Why are you doing this?" Naruto asked.

"Because, I have somebody very special to me that I have hopes to see again." Haku said. "I had to save you so I could get closer to doing that."

"Who would that be?" Naruto asked again.

"His name is Zabuza. He looked after me for so long and now he's frozen. I need to revive him back. He is my hope for the future." Haku answered.

"You're from that organization aren't you? I can tell from your cloak." Naruto said.

"Yes I am. I am from the Shouten, the most powerful organization in the world. And you are from the Akatsuki raised with them since you were thirteen. But recently you have not felt like you belonged so you left them and now they are out to get you. I have done my research." Haku said.

They began to have small talk, eventually leading up to no lies, everything was out in the open.

"What does everybody want with me?" Naruto asked as tears rolled down his cheeks. "I've always been a tool and nothing more to anyone. I only have one last person left alive that I care about and I don't even know where he is. On top of that, you're taking me back to your organization where I will probably die."

Haku couldn't help but feel pity for Naruto. But sadly, there was nothing he could do because in the end, Kyu would get his way and that was that. "Things are going to happen so fast, that the world is going to change so much. For better or for worse I do not know, but I don't think there is a force on earth that can stop our leader. Not after he has obtained your power. I don't know if I should give you up to him. This decision could leave the world in chaos. On the other hand if I didn't go back then they would find me and kill me and then get your power then torture you and then kill you and everybody you know for such disobedience. I suppose there is nothing I can do to prevent this. I will be taking you back now. We've been talking for about three hours now." Haku sighed.

"You won't be taking him anywhere." A familiar voice appeared. Haku turned around to see Hinata with her sword looking fully recuperated.

"I have to. You don't understand, it's not that I want to, but I must out of loyalty. I'm sorry but you can't have him." Haku said standing up and stepping in front of Naruto blocking Hinata's way.

"You may be a member of the Shouten, but I will defeat you and bring back Naruto at all costs! His demon must be extracted. I too, do this of loyalty, I pledge my life to the Akatsuki and I don't plan to disappoint them. Hand over Naruto now and I will let you live." Hinata threatened.

"I can sense you chakra level rising to an incredible level, one of the biggest I've ever seen; but it won't work against me. I am a master at chakra control." Haku said. "If you start this fight, I won't stop until you are dead, even if you are a girl. I already said I won't let you take him, so I'm asking you now, please listen to me. Go back, and tell them you couldn't find him. It's better than losing your life." Haku said standing tall.

"Don't fight her." Naruto said tiredly. "She is stronger than you think. She has an unlimited amount of potential; every fight makes her so much stronger."

"Have faith in me. I am not as weak as I am peaceful. The warrior within me is not to be underestimated." Haku explained.

"Step aside." Hinata said through gritted teeth as she clenched her sword tightly.

"No." Haku said.

"Very well, then so be it. You shall die in this battle, but don't forget that I gave you this choice!" Hinata said rushing at Haku with her new sword that Bushi had gave her in her previous fight.

---

Kiran sat on a small rock inside the base very pensive and silent. He stared into nothingness as Eight entered the room to sit by him. Kagai had finally fixed Eight's body so that he was returned completely back to normal.

"What are you thinking about?" Eight asked. "Is it about your brother?"

Kiran said nothing.

"I keep thinking about the battle as well. I fought the famous Itachi with the Mangekyou sharingan and a teenage girl with a sword. It's amazing how their teamwork covered each other's weaknesses. That girl was much stronger than I thought. I went easy on them, and she pulled off a move so strong that it was able to slice me in half. Can you imagine? She was able to cut through my metallic skeleton. Next time I fight her, I won't be going so easy." Eight said. "How did your fight go?"

"I keep asking myself if it was right to kill him." Kiran said sighing. "Now I'm the only one left of our clan. He had more potential than me. But I trained harder and for many more years; that is the reason why I was able to achieve my ultimate form. He was not so close to unlocking it but he wasn't too far off either. Maybe I should have let him live so then when we fought again we could-" Kiran was interrupted by Eight.

"What's done is done. There is no point dwelling on the past anymore. To be a great shinobi you must sacrifice many things. Dwelling on the past is one of them. The past is there to remind you of your mistakes, so that way you won't have to make them again. The past is there so you can visit your memories in the middle of the night, and be proud of what you've lived, of how you've lived, not regret what you've done. He was your brother, but the Shouten is your family now and will be forever. Kyu is proud of what you did; I can see it in his eyes and face. I know that deep down he is extremely happy that your loyalty to him is greater than your loyalty to your brother. I don't think he will ever question you again because you went on with it and killed Akuma when you could have let him escape without anyone knowing. You made a decision back there, and I know that it was the right one." Eight said patting Kiran on the back.

"I hope that you are right." Kiran said. "Where is our leader now?"

"He's in the chamber looking at his body. He's probably reminiscing or something." Eight replied.

"Things are going to go much faster now aren't they?" Kiran asked. "It seems Kyu is really planning to take action after all these years of waiting. I think that seeing the new threats that have arrived have caused him to rush things."

"Threats? Like what?"

"Like the Akatsuki. Now that we have killed off a couple of their members, they are sure to be aggravated by this. I believe that Akuma was the leader as well. So this will definitely cause some chaos between them. They will try to take us down because we are a threat to them as well. They are trying to capture as many demons as they can so they can use their power for something. That poses a threat to us because Naruto has the Kyubbi inside him. They want to take it our, and that would spoil all our plans." Kiran explained. "Also there is Orochimaru and his spies. I know he has many but you can never be to sure. We must be careful of him because we do not know what he is planning."

"Then why don't we simply take them all out?" Eight asked.

"Because that would be foolish. We could jeopardize everything we have worked for just because of that. Kyu thinks with his head, not with his passion for blood. He is a smart and worthy leader. As I said before, things are going to move fast at this point. We can only hope that the wind tosses the rag our way."

---

_Swish_! Hinata's sword managed to slice Haku's cloak as he dashed away from her strike. Amazingly, the rip the made in his large black cloak healed itself up instantly.

"That was a close one. If I had stayed a little longer then I would not be alive this very moment. I really do suppose you are going to try to kill me." Haku said.

Hinata didn't wait for Haku to say anything else; she dashed at him like a piece of gum on a shoe. However her hundreds of attempts to strike him were useless since he was dodging them with extreme caution. She didn't even get to pierce his cloak again. After a few minutes of chasing Haku around, she stopped to take a breather. She stood there gripping her sword with both hands, breathing heavily as she glared into her opponent's eyes with fury.

Haku on the other hand was panting just as much. "So you really are serious about this fight. Then I better get serious as well." Just as he said that, his cloak dispersed and reformed it self into a large black square blanket behind him.

"What is that?" Hinata asked.

"This is not a cloak as you thought it was. It is composed of thousands of poisonous needles that I can control with my chakra. Every single time my cloak moved, even with the wind, was me controlling it to fool you all along. So you see, I control this cloak all the time, therefore my chakra control is beyond that of most shinobi. That is how my cloak was able to heal itself once you cut it. You on the other hand are left-handed. I can tell by the way you grip your sword's hilt tighter with your left. Your footwork is also excellent just like your graceful sword techniques. However I have studied all of them, so there's not much of a chance that any of those regular blows will be able to hit me. My needles also work as a shield so it is in a sort of sense an ultimate protection. Be careful not to get poked by one of these because a single one of them will kill you within a few hours. So imagine how fast I can kill you with all of them. The beginning of a fight is always analysis; you should know that if you were a skilled fighter." Haku said.

"Why would you tell me this? It seems to me like you're giving away all your secrets to win." Hinata said.

"I am merely giving you a heads up of what you are dealing with. If I didn't then you'd be dead this instant, and that wouldn't be much of a fight now would it?" Haku explained.

With that, they were at it again. Hinata was still attempting to cut Haku while this time trying to dodge the needles that came at her from time to time. Haku had so many open spots that he could strike her, but it was as if he was going easy on her, having fun. This of course, only made Hinata more furious than she already was. It allowed her to swing faster and stronger, but even then Haku kept up.

"I'm going to have to step it up this time." Hinata said. "Kage Bunshin!" Suddenly, a sword appeared in her right hand so now she was holding two of them. But that was not all; there were two swords that crossed each other attached to her back by a leather belt that had also appeared. She was definitely prepared this time.

"Tei Katana!" Hinata shouted swinging both her swords vertically towards Haku. There was a slightly visible wind that sped straight for Haku. Amazingly though, the wind disappeared when it got five feet from hitting Haku's body as if nothing had ever occurred. "How?" Hinata screamed.

"It seems you are too inexperienced to understand. You apparently didn't listen to me when I explained my needles. You are supposed to look underneath the underneath. I am not going to tell you why your Jutsu failed. I am going to tell you that it will never work against me and that you are going to have to figure out for yourself why that is. Come, let us begin this battle." Haku said.

---

"Where is Haku?" Kagai asked as Saru arrived to the base panting. Luckily he had not been followed so he managed to arrive back safely.

"Haku's plan was to take a detour so he could lose the Akatsuki incase they chased us. He has Naruto's body and should be back soon." Saru said.

"Good. I'm glad you came back already because our leader has just arranged a new mission for your training." Kagai said.

"Oh? What would that be?" Saru asked inquisitively.

"He wants you to steal the sacred Jutsu scrolls from the sand village. According to any village, this would be a very high S rank mission so it will not be easy. Another obstacle set up for you is that you must do this on your own. You can be sure that the Kazekage there will not let you get away without a fight. If you end up fighting the Kazekage and a few members of ANBU, then you got lucky. The worst that could happen is that every single shinobi in the village teams up against you, in which case you will die. But you pledged your life for this organization, so you must complete this mission." Kagai explained.

"If I am to fight him, is there anything I should know about the Kazekage?" Saru asked.

"Well he is a jinchuuriki or demon vessel as we like to call it that carries the one-tailed demon Shukaku. His name is Gaara of the sand. There are a few things that we do know about him that may help you in your battle against him. First is that he can control any sand around him by mixing it with chakra, second is that he carries a gourd of sand on his back that aids him in battle as well. He uses his sand as an absolute defense by surrounding himself in a large sphere that is very tough to break; he also can use his sand as an offensive attack to surround your body and crush you leaving you completely useless for life or dead. We also did obtain a piece of information that relates to the Akatsuki. A few years ago they sent Naruto to capture him during the Chunnin exams. The attempt failed and caused a great big stir in all the countries. However after all these years, the leaf and sand village have become allies once again. So do not be surprised if allies from the leaf show up to aid them. As I said before, this is a high S class mission so do not underestimate anything there. Steal the scrolls and get back to the base without anyone on your trail. That is all." Kagai said.

"When do I leave?"

"Now." Kagai said dismissing Saru from his sight. Saru was obedient and fled from the base quickly heading toward the sand village in his new black cloak. He did feel a little scared as well as eager to fight since he was going alone.

"I have been able to defeat an experienced Hokage so I should be able to take down a young Kazekage if I try my best. I can't take this lightly; I need to see my brother again." Saru said to himself.

---

Anything and everything Hinata tried against Haku was no use at all. He was too fast, even for her. He was way smarter and had much more battle experience, she was beginning to doubt if she could ever win. But the sad truth was that she could not back down anymore, it was too late; she had to carry on this fight to either live or die.

So far she had made no progress as to figure out why none of her Jutsu's were working against her opponent. No matter how much she thought, she couldn't come up with a solution. Haku seemed to know where she would strike every single time. She was now extremely exhausted from the battle, but she had to continue on.

Haku on the other hand had barely begun to sweat. He was panting as well from all the dodging he was doing. He hadn't laid a single finger on his opponent even though the battle could have been over already if he had chosen to.

"I am honestly tired of this. I'm sorry Hinata, but I'm going to have to end this. Demonic ice mirrors!" Haku shouted as he formed a unique hand seal. Suddenly, the air became cold, and the wind became sharp; mirrors made of ice began to form around Hinata. The ice took rectangular shapes the ultimately formed a dome around Hinata. Haku was somehow in one of the mirrors of the many around her.

"This is my clan's blood limit. It has been a while since I was forced to use it. I simply am using it now to show you how much you still need to beat me. Prepare to feel pain." Haku said as he suddenly disappeared and reappeared in a different mirror on the opposite side. In doing this, Hinata fell back as she felt a force slam into her face and send her down to the floor. She looked back at Haku in the different mirror. "These mirrors allow me to travel within them with such speed, that human eyes cannot follow them. I simply appear to them as a blur but what I am doing is punching you every time I move from mirror to mirror. The next time won't be a punch but a stab."

Hinata was now completely alert as well as furious from being toyed with so much. She hadn't been taking this battle lightly but apparently Haku had; this in turn only infuriated Hinata to the maximum. Her adrenaline pumped through her veins that she could tell what was going on all around her. This time, she was ready for Haku.

Swoosh! Haku switched mirrors in attempt to stab Hinata with a needle he pulled out of his long hair. His attempt failed as Hinata dodged it completely. "It's Amazing that you were able to do that." Haku complimented Hinata.

Hinata didn't wait around to listen to her opponent. The first chance she got, she ran to the nearest mirror and struck it the hardest she could with her sword. Haku laughed as nothing happened. "This isn't regular ice; it's going to take way more than that to stop it. But it seems that all of your Jutsu's have not been working lately. Apparently, you have not figured it out yet. Since you're about to die, I will tell you. The first strike that you took against me, you managed to cut my cloak. The whole truth is that I let you do that. I did that in order so that I could attach as many needles as possible to the blade of your sword without them being noticeable. Since you hold the sharp part of the sword outwards like a regular sword fighter does in order to cut, you didn't notice the needles stuck to it since you were only able to see the back of your sword. Since they were attached I was able to even control where your sword would strike without you knowing you sword even changed the course you intended it to go. My needles were able to slightly change the location of where you would have regularly struck your sword. It was a very inconspicuous technique and it worked after all. I told you in the beginning remember? You must look underneath the underneath."

Hinata was speechless. Such wit was used with such a simple weapon. Haku really was above her level, and it was now that she realized it. "So it seems I will have to go all out in order to take Naruto away." Hinata said. However the situation was that, she didn't even care about retrieving Naruto anymore. Her passion and loyalty went all to focusing on the battle. Nothing else mattered. What she couldn't understand was why Haku was risking his life in the first place for someone he didn't really even know. That was what confused her most of all.

She had one plan left to defeat Haku and get her out of the situation she was in. She could feel her chakra level rising to new heights, now was the time to win.

She raised her sword high in the air with the point tilting straight upwards as she said, "Shidenissen no Jutsu!" The Jutsu was quick; lightning appeared and struck down close to Hinata's body. Before the lightning bolt could hit the ground she swung her sword with as much force as she could saying, "Bushi no Jutsu!!!"

The force of the technique caused the orange glow of power to mix with the lightning that was coming down. They joined together to form an ultimate strike flying towards the ice mirror that Haku was in. The new technique shattered Haku's ice mirror and sent him flying to the ground near Naruto covered in his own blood. Hinata had no more energy but she was strong enough to keep awake. The ice mirrors disappeared instantly and she rushed over to her dying opponent.

There lay Haku, who only wanted one thing: to see his master Zabuza again. But that would never happen since he took his last breaths so say, "A battle well fought, and an opponent completely worthy. Take Naruto, you earned the right to claim him."

Hinata was just about to lift the blond boy's body until she felt a sharp pain surge throughout her entire body. Suddenly she felt cold and began to perspire greatly. Her whole body felt weak and in pain, she even had a headache.

Haku smiled showing his bloody mouth. "So you are starting to feel the poison huh? It was when you felt that I punched you in the face. What you didn't notice was that I stuck a needle into your neck. The poison has probably already gotten into your bloodstream and is killing you as we speak. You will die within half an hour a cold and painful death. I don't mean to be so cold-hearted, but I cannot simply allow you to jeopardize my mission. You should hurry and get back to your base if you have any hopes of living. Forget about carrying Naruto because in a few minutes you won't even be able to walk yourself. Hope for your sake that the Akatsuki can save you before it's too late. Goodbye Hinata. Again, I don't mean to be cold-hearted, but I cannot allow for you to take him no matter what." With that Haku laid his head back and breathed no more.

Naruto's eyes began to tear. "Why are so many people dying because of me? What does everybody want with me?"

Hinata couldn't wait around to hear him out; she could only dash off towards the base in hopes that she would make it.

Naruto was now mostly fine and rested, he was still weak but he would manage to get around after this. He didn't have to sit alone crying for too long, because soon enough, an unexpected guest showed up.

"I never thought I would see you sitting on the floor looking like a helpless person." Sasuke said looking down at Naruto.

Naruto stood up facing Sasuke as he wiped his tears from his face. Sasuke was taller than him, and he had been training with Orochimaru for three years. "I thought the next time that I saw you, that you would be thanking me." Naruto said.

"I do thank you, and I will show you now how much I've improved. I've surpassed even you Naruto." Sasuke said standing tall. He was wearing a white shirt that had the Uchiha symbol on the back. He wore dark pants and he had a sword in its sheath behind him tied to his waist. He slowly unsheathed his sword and held it in his left hand.

"How would you know if you've surpassed me?" Naruto asked. "We have never even fought."

"I can now tell how strong a person is by simply looking at them for a few minutes. And I can tell you now, that I am stronger." Sasuke said getting ready to fight.

"Don't get so cocky. I am not even fully rested." Naruto said. "But if this is what you want then don't expect me to hold back on you. After all I did show you how to get this strong; and now you want to kill me? I'm not going to let this pass."

"Naruto, you don't have a choice to even go easy on me. You cannot afford that here, go all out, or you will die faster than I want you to." Sasuke said.

"It doesn't matter what you say, all what matters is what you do. Prove what you so proudly say; show me how much you have become." Naruto said standing tall.

_Voom, voom, voom, voom_! Naruto was amazed at the speed Sasuke swung his sword. It caught him off guard so much that he barely had time to block. He managed to block every single slice but tripped over himself in the process. He fell flat on his bottom looking up at Sasuke who had been able to give Naruto a small cut across his chest.

Sasuke only smiled; he gave no time for Naruto to recuperate. _Voom, voom, voom_!!! Naruto dashed out of the way as Sasuke attempted to end Naruto there.

"This is just the beginning!" Sasuke said chasing after him. Sasuke swung his sword vertically attempting to decapitate Naruto who ducked dodging the swing. Sasuke, already anticipating the move drove his knee upwards towards Naruto's sinking head.

Naruto was not well rested, but his reflects were just as good as ever; he blocked Sasuke's knee with one hand and blocked Sasuke's fist coming at him from the side with the other hand. Naruto pushed off of Sasuke flying back a few feet panting. Sasuke was completely fine. Before Naruto could react, Sasuke was behind him in no time. It was then that Sasuke grabbed the end of Naruto's long hair pulling his head backwards so Sasuke could speak in his ear.

"You're a dead man." Sasuke whispered with a smirk on his face.

Naruto whipped out a kunai and sliced the back of his hair off in order to escape Sasuke's grasp.

"Well, well, well. It appears that you gave yourself a haircut." Sasuke said chucking a little.

Naruto now looked as he did three years ago before his training. However his facial features had matured by a lot and his height had grown. He was a few inches taller than Sasuke.

"As I said before, I can already tell that you are no match for me." Sasuke said.

"Alright fine." Naruto said. "I will kill you." With that Naruto's face became as serious as death as he glared a sharp glare at his opponent. He was now taking the battle seriously after realizing that his life really was in jeopardy if he didn't try.

Authors Note: Hey guys this is chapter twenty one for you I hoped you like it. For those of you still reading, please review this. I want to know that you're still here. Your reviews are my motivation so please…motivate me. I'm honestly not sure how much sooner the next chapter will come out. Until next time!


	22. Reunification

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Chapter Twenty One: Reunification

The battle so far had been nothing but Taijutsu and Naruto was already exhausted. Sasuke was barely panting and he was the one chasing Naruto all around.

"It seems as if you are worried that you will not be able to take me." Sasuke said. "Let me make this easier, Chidori current!"

Suddenly, electricity seemed to be everywhere. It was inevitable and Naruto fell to the floor in pain. He stood up slowly all beat up.

"What is wrong Naruto?" Sasuke asked.

Naruto wiped the blood from his chin and smiled. "You don't understand, I'm trying to hold back the demon inside me. The seal is broken and he could be released at anytime. I'm doing this for your sake. I plan on containing the Kyubbi as best as possible, because nobody would ever be able to tell it was your body that was destroyed if it got out. It is harder than it looks." Naruto said.

"Release it. The stronger you are the better. I want to beat you at your best." Sasuke said.

"You don't understand; if I release it, it'll be so hard to regain control especially since I don't have the seal anymore." Naruto said.

"Well in that case, I will force you to release it." Sasuke said dashing at Naruto once more.

Despite the gash Sasuke was able to inflict on Naruto, he managed to dodge most of it. If he had not moved, his body would be now in two pieces. Naruto jumped back as his blood splattered on the ground.

Sasuke dashed straight in front of Naruto and slashed at him with his sword. Naruto took two steps back as he avoided the attack easily. Sasuke smiled as Naruto's feet suddenly became tied up together so that he couldn't move his legs. Naruto was now still in one location vulnerable to any of Sasuke's attacks. However Naruto still had his arms.

"You stepped right where I wanted you to." Sasuke said. "Uchuu no Jutsu!" Sasuke held out his hand that had his five fingers spread apart. Black forms of chakra appeared at each of his fingertips and developed into small dark spheres. They then flew at and positioned themselves around Naruto.

"KAI!!!!" Sasuke screamed forming one hand seal. It seemed as if each of the black spheres imploded. Naruto felt gravity pull him from all angles and felt as if his body would be ripped apart. He screamed in agony as he struggled to move an inch, but the effort was futile. The gravity from each implosion was too strong for him to even budge.

Naruto could feel the rage inside him. He needed to finish things, and there was no way to do that in his position. First of all, he wasn't even fully recovered from the weak state that he was in. Second, he struggled to keep the Kyubbi inside; however now the Kyubbi was stronger than ever inside him, dying to be let out. Naruto knew that if he didn't allow himself to turn demon now, then he may never even have a later.

Red chakra engulfed Naruto within a matter of seconds as he allowed his inner demon to take control. His eyes turned red and his nail grew long; this is what Sasuke was hoping for.

Naruto's new chakra alone deteriorated the implosion portals. They were gone, and Naruto's gash on his arm was completely healed. Sasuke didn't wait any time to attack; he appeared behind Naruto attempting to decapitate him. Instead, Naruto whirled around and smacked Sasuke in the side of the face sending him flying through many trees.

Sasuke fell to the floor but got back up quickly. He looked straight ahead at his raging opponent who was now walking towards him. He could feel the killing intent so strong that his knees were about to buckle. His fear gave him power and excitement for the battle.

"I can see you decided to take me seriously." Sasuke said as he released his curse seal. Marking spread all throughout his body and gave him ten times the speed and strength he had before. His eyes turned black with yellow pupils.

Sasuke's curse seal made no difference in the battle whatsoever because before he could react, Naruto disappeared and reappeared above Sasuke slamming him into the ground creating a large crater destroying many trees.

Sasuke got up quickly again this time activating curse seal level two. This time his whole body changed. His skin grew darker and his hair turned white. He grew wings from his back and stood strong against his opponent holding his sword.

Naruto's chakra seemed to have a mind of it's own as it took the form of a large demon that blasted a huge sphere of blood red chakra at Sasuke.

Sasuke covered his body with both of his wings as they collided with Naruto's attack.

At the end of it, the crater was larger and Sasuke's wings were blown off and his back was full of blood. His body however, was fine.

Sasuke knew he had to do something fast for Naruto's chakra was already blasting another sphere of red chakra. Sasuke formed hundreds of hand seals within a few seconds shouting, "Chigiri Kanegoto!!"

The next thing that happened was that Sasuke's body in curse seal level two form seemed to rip as a new body tore threw it. The new body went threw the chakra blast as easily as it came out from Sasuke's body.

The old body fell to the floor and turned to dust instantly. The new body stood there as Naruto took a good look at his new opponent.

This new form was simply Sasuke in a more muscular build. His hair was cut short and was spiky. He held no weapon in his hands at all. He only wore pants and his muscular upper body showed the tattoo clearly on his back. The tattoo on his back was a large phoenix that completely covered it. It was glowing red as were Sasuke's eyes.

"This," Sasuke began sounding as if one thousand Sasuke's were speaking all at once, "is my ultimate form: Curse seal level three."

Sasuke ran up to Naruto and punched his face send Naruto flying elsewhere. Naruto fell completely normal without his demon chakra. He got up, feeling perfectly fine.

"What did you do?" Sasuke asked catching up with Naruto.

"I regained control." Naruto said. "I want to fight you in your strongest form without my demon. I will show you, that I can still beat you. Sasuke, you still have much to learn so please don't make the mistake that you can beat me. Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" Naruto put both hands down on the ground summoning a large lump of white clay.

"I have not used this strategy for so long; HAIRIGUCHI NO JUTSU!!!" Naruto screamed as he raised his right hand high up in the air. Naruto's palm suddenly opened in the middle to reveal teeth and a tongue. Naruto now had a small mouth in the middle of his hand.

He began immediately by placing his hand right on the large boulder of clay that was three times taller than Naruto.

Sasuke only waited a few seconds before he charged at the occupied Naruto. He attempted to punch Naruto but Naruto simply stopped eating the clay with his hand and immediately created a clay shield that he now held with his left hand. He was able to block Sasuke's attack with his clay shield and began his process of consuming the boulder once more.

Sasuke's attempts to lay a single attack on Naruto all failed as Naruto blocked them. But his efforts were not useless, for after a few minutes, the clay shield fell to pieces. By that time, Naruto was ready and had consumed enough clay.

"I'm ready." Naruto said, "Are you?"

Sasuke didn't answer him. Instead, he dashed at Naruto swinging his leg at Naruto's face. Naruto grabbed Sasuke's leg and attempted to uppercut Sasuke's chin. Sasuke dodged the punch and wrapped his hand around Naruto's neck choking him with all his might.

Naruto fell to his knees from the lack of oxygen. All he could do was grab Sasuke with his right arm and chew through his muscle. Sasuke let go immediately to avoid any serious injury, but not without taking a chunk of Naruto's skin first.

Naruto now had a large wound in his neck that was bleeding severely. He took his left hand and healed the wound to a small scab before continuing his battle. He stood up and stared at Sasuke as he took the chunk of skin he was holding and ate it. Naruto put his hands together to form a few hand seals shouting, "Nendo Bunshin no Jutsu!"

Suddenly, A Bunshin of Sasuke appeared except completely pale like the color of the clay.

"You think that a simple clone will be able to take me on?" Sasuke asked insulted.

"This isn't just an ordinary clone." Naruto said smiling.

The clay Sasuke dashed at the real one saying, "Chidori current." Electricity flowed throughout the atmosphere towards Sasuke. But he formed hand seals saying, "Shugo Ametsuchi."

A black sphere appeared around Sasuke blocking all of the electricity passing by.

Naruto smiled. "So it appears that you know this move. It just so happens that I do to. It has a weak spot: Underground!"

The Sasuke Bunshin disappeared and reappeared inside the sphere shield from under it. BOOM! The Bunshin exploded and the shield was gone. Sasuke was left on the floor, back to his original form, almost unconscious.

"You are lucky…that I did not…use all of my power." Sasuke said.

"It doesn't matter." Naruto stated walking up to his opponent. "It's over for you."

Sasuke closed his eyes slowly accepting his deathly fate. After a few seconds of waiting he opened his eyes once more and looked up at Naruto. "Why don't you kill me?" Sasuke asked.

"There is no point in me doing that. It serves me no good to kill you, so why should I do it? I'm not a coward, I'm not afraid to show mercy. I know that after this, you will not only get stronger for Itachi, but get stronger to beat me as well. Even though I know this, I still do not kill you; it's because I am not a coward. I am not afraid of a fight. The better challenge you can bring me, the better. Just make sure the next time to talk so much trash that you can back it up. We're done here." Naruto said walking away from the battle.

Sasuke was left alone, wondering what right after all.

---

Naruto was feeling even worse than he had begun. After releasing the Kyubbi twice, his body was exhausted and he could barely stay conscious. However, despite his tiredness, he could feel the powerful presence near him. He stood still, alert as a cat.

"Don't be so afraid, Naruto." Ketsu said as he stepped out from behind a tree and greeted his brother with a hug. "I knew I would find you."

"Ketsu," Naruto sighed. "I must find a place to rest somewhere."

"Don't worry, we'll find one; just as soon as I can take care of the one who's been following me." Ketsu said.

Naruto looked behind Ketsu to see Sasori, master of puppets, smiling deviously.

"I don't understand what it is about you two," Sasori began. "That lets you stay so close. I couldn't stand my family, so either I had to escape, or kill them. Luckily, I decided to do both."

"Don't think you will survive this battle." Ketsu stated leaving Naruto to rest on the floor. "I won't let you harm Naruto."

"And we won't let you harm Ketsu!" A familiar voice shouted as two figures jumped down from the treetops.

"Ryu! Kyozoku! What are you guys doing here?" Ketsu asked in amazement.

"Let's talk later Ketsu, first we have to take this guy down." Ryu said halting the conversation for a later time.

Sasori smiled getting ready for battle. He was already in his original human form. "This will be fun." He said.

Kyozoku and Ryu both prepared for battle as Ketsu and Naruto both went off into the distance to rest.

---

Saru's first mission as a Shouten member and he was nervous. He was worried for his life. He needed to get those scrolls and make it back alive. He wasn't sure how he was going to manage it. But one thing was definite; he needed to revive Sora no matter what the cost. If he needed to take down the whole sand village by himself to do it, then he would.

He was just a few miles from the entrance and he could see it in range. He pondered on how to get in without making a large commotion. If he didn't kill all the front guards fast enough, they would alarm the village, and then he would definitely be done for.

It was when he reached the gate where he found his idea: Genjutsu. Each guard was caught within his technique without even knowing it. They didn't see Saru entering the village because the Jutsu didn't allow them to. It looked regular all the way even after Saru entered the village. He wore a black cloak and underneath the night sky he could not be spotted easily.

He knew that the scrolls were protected in the very middle of the village in a large tall building. He was able to enter the building inconspicuously but the guards immediately spotted him when he walked in. He killed the two guards in a heartbeat and proceeded to the top floor of the building where he entered a large room.

The room was completely empty except for one man that stood with his back to Saru, facing out the window. Tied to his back, was the scroll Saru was looking for. The man was in fact a teenager no older than eighteen. He had red hair that blew with the wind, and he crossed his arms and was very pensive.

"How did you know I was coming for the scroll?" Saru asked removing the hood from his cloak to reveal his head.

The person turned around to reveal dark circles around his eyes, and a tattoo on his upper left forehead that said "Love".

"I placed my sand all over the floor of the village. I don't know how you got in here without anybody noticing but I knew you were coming as soon as you stepped your first foot into here. I didn't know what you wanted until I saw that you headed for this building which only holds one object of value; and that is this scroll." The man said.

"If I am not mistaken, you are the Kazekage of this village?" Saru asked.

"Yes, I am Gaara of the sands, and you, are trespassing." Gaara said.

"I was informed that you would carry a gorge around your back." Saru stated.

"I don't need it this particular evening." Gaara said being very vague. "I'm going to make this simple for you…" Gaara paused awaiting Saru to finish his sentence.

"My name is Amatari Saru and I am here but only to take that scroll from you. I have no other purpose for being here." Saru said telling the complete truth.

"Since you have not harmed anybody in this village except the two guards downstairs, I'm going to make this easy. You want this scroll for whatever reason, and I can't let you have it. But if you can beat me in this match, it's all yours. No ANBU, nobody else except you and me. How does that sound?" Gaara offered.

"Now when you say to defeat you, what exactly does that entail? A fight to the death?" Saru asked.

"Even easier, if you can land a punch to my face and make me bleed, and make me fall to the floor a single time, I will gladly cooperate and hand over this scroll." Gaara said.

"I will accept your offer and I would like to add that you are very generous." Saru said. "Killing should only be used as a last resort."

"Very well; let's begin." Gaara said still with his arms crossed.

Saru immediately removed his cloak to reveal the tight body suit that he just got from Kagai. "I'm deciding not to take it easy on this one." He said getting ready to fight.

With that Saru charged at his opponent, the Kazekage, and the battle commenced.

--

Sasori didn't waste any time fooling around because he immediately started to transform. His puppet-like body seemed to change almost inside-out with few parts of his body shifting from one place to another. His head folded inside his chest and his face covered the black hole where his neck used to be. From his sides six more arms came out that extended to be around ten feet long each. His legs opened up and joined together extending outwards to from a very long tail. In the end, he seemed to be a cross between a human, spider, and scorpion.

His two arms on the front were normal length but he had six other long arms that he stood on which gave him the spider appearance. His face faced forward from that spider position. Then it led to his long tail that thrashed around violently. The end of the tail split into two smaller tails that had a spike on the ends of them just like his former shelter puppet that he walked around in.

"Like I said, I've improved myself from before. This is my masterpiece. I no longer collect puppets; I studied the ones I had. I studied them each for hours and found their best strength. I eventually added all the parts of three hundred puppets to myself to create the ultimate one." Sasori said smiling deviously. "There is no escape from here."

"Why did you come?" Ryu asked him.

"I've been tracking Naruto ever since he was taken from our base. It was easier for Mihniopaksu to heal me since I am but a puppet myself. So after healing up, I followed the trail Hinata left. I came across her and I helped her back to the base. I followed Naruto's trail all the way here. I can't let you escape demon, we need your power." Sasori explained.

"I'm sorry that you made the mistake of coming yourself because after this battle, the Akatsuki will have one less member." Kyozoku said disappearing and reappearing standing on top of Sasori's back.

Sasori's tail immediately dashed to stab Kyozoku but her reflects were to fast. She moved to the side dodging the attack and grabbed the end of the tail with both of her arms.

"Mizu Kireme no Jutsu." Kyozoku said as suddenly the tail stopped moving at once. She jumped off and back to Ryu.

"That is one less problem to take care of," she said. "I jammed all of the joints in your tail by putting ice in between them. Your best bet is to break the tail off if you don't want it to slow you down." Kyozoku said.

"Fool!" Sasori shouted. "Do you think that matters?" Suddenly, the tail unhinged itself from all the joints and fell to the ground in twenty pieces. Each piece hit the ground hard and made a small crack in the dirt. "Each piece weighs about one hundred pounds, even if you did lock my joints with ice, it would have made no difference. Now that I have removed the tail, I have become so much lighter. This happened faster than I expected but it doesn't matter, I still have more tricks up my sleeve."

Ryu charged at him at full speed swinging his staff as fast and as hard as he could but despite his size, Sasori was incredibly fast. He dodged most of Ryu's attacks and the ones that were not dodged didn't even put a single scratch on Sasori.

Kyozoku concentrated by herself standing quietly on a rock gathering chakra. Finally she created large spheres of water that could hold a child in it. Each of the six spheres chased after Sasori but they were not fast enough to catch up either.

"Ryu!" Kyozoku shouted her opponent's name.

"I understand!" Ryu shouted back figuring out the plan they had both put together.

Ryu's staff unscrewed at two points in his staff that connected to the middle piece with a short chain. He had three equal pieces and swung them around from the middle portion. His weapon looked like a long nun chuck with a middle piece. Ryu's control of his staff became so much better and now he landed almost every single hit against his large opponent. This stunned Sasori only for a moment, but that was all that was needed.

Ryu dashed back quickly avoiding the six water spheres that flew at Sasori. They connected forming a large water sphere that held Sasori inside simply floating there.

"Water prison technique complete!" Kyozoku said. "Kai!" She put her hands together and the water prison imploded. This caused Sasori's body to cramp up together but for some reason it did not shatter like Kyozoku and Ryu had expected.

Sasori fell to the ground and got back up twisting his joints to reassure himself that everything was okay. "Don't you understand? I have an ultimate defense!"

"There is a weakness somewhere, and we will find it." Ryu said determined.

---

BAM, BAM, BAM!!!! No matter how many times Saru tried, he could not get past the barrier Gaara had around him. The sand blocked his attacks with such speed that there was no tricking it.

Genjutsu didn't work either, no matter how hard Saru tried to get Gaara to crumble under whatever illusion he could come up with, it would never work. Gaara always dispelled himself from the Jutsu too fast to cause even the slightest mental damage.

Not only was his opponent intimidating by being the Kazekage himself, but he didn't even know if he was strong enough. He would have to use his blood limit.

"You're cheating." Saru said gasping for air.

"No, I'm simply giving you a handicap. You haven't done a single thing yet." Gaara said making Saru even more frustrated.

Saru put his rock arms together and formed a light ball and controlled it so that it stayed just in front of him. Now was the time to attack. He rushed at Gaara head on with the tiny light ball right in front of him as always.

The light ball charged and went straight through Gaara's sand barrier directly at his head. Gaara was fast enough to dodge it so that the light ball went out the other side of the sand barrier. This was exactly what Saru had been hoping for.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" Saru shouted creating another clone of himself. The clone went straight to the back of Gaara's barrier where the hole was. Both Saru's reached into the holes that were created by the light ball and grabbed Gaara's hair with one arm. With the other arm they both placed it somewhere on the sand barrier that was a complete sphere.

"Haretsu." Saru simply said as the whole barrier itself exploded inside sending both Saru's back. The Bunshin disappeared and the real Saru quickly stood up to look at his opponent. There was Gaara, lying on the floor bleeding badly from his chest. His skin was all cracked.

"It seems you even had another barrier beyond that barrier." Saru said figuring it all out. "The outside of your body is not even flesh, it's more sand, a stronger protection for yourself. Too bad it can't stand more than one explosion."

Saru lifted Gaara up and punched him in the face. Gaara fell to the floor sighing. "It's yours; you won. Now take the scroll and leave."

Saru did just that. He removed the scroll from Gaara's back and left the sand village without anybody on his back.

He returned to the Shouten base proud of his accomplishment.

---

Nothing seemed to work against the so called, "Master Puppet." Sasori was invincible in every area. He still did not have a single scratch on his whole body.

Ryu and Kyozoku on the other hand were beginning to wear out; but they could not let Sasori get to Ketsu or Naruto who were resting far off from the area.

"Ryu, I think you should take it up a notch." Kyozoku said to her ally. "We're not getting anywhere and we're only tiring ourselves out. It's obvious that this tactic isn't going to work so we have to use our better tricks."

Ryu nodded as spikes suddenly came out of the end of his staff. Now he could swing the two ends of his staff and it would cause much more damage.

BAM, BAM, BAM, BAM!!! Four different holes in Sasori's belly were made.

"It looks like we're getting somewhere." Ryu said smiling.

Sasori only smiled. "I was waiting for you to finally cause some damage; now it's time for both of you to see MY better tricks: first tail." Sasori called out.

Suddenly, Ryu and Kyozoku heard a very peculiar noise coming from a few feet away from them. It was one piece of the tail that fell; apparently, each of the five pieces of the tail were all puppets. The piece was the bottom piece that connected to Sasori directly and it unfolded to become a large puppet turtle.

However, this wasn't just a regular wooden turtle; instead of a head and four legs, each of the five openings were tubes that looked like large cannons. The shell looked just like a turtle's shell and it was large and round. The belly of the puppet lay flat on the ground unwilling to budge.

"Meet the first of my five puppets. Each tail that I call out is only stronger than the last. If you cannot beat this one with ease, don't even bother trying with the last two tails pieces. Now the question is if you can deal with this puppet, and me at the same time." Sasori said as he dashed at Kyozoku.

Each of the five cannons shot kunai every single moment that Kyozoku or Ryu stepped in front of them. It wasn't easy to dodge; especially since Sasori chased them into the shooting range many times.

Ryu tried breaking the large shell but in the end it was futile.

Sasori laughed at Ryu's attempts. "Hahahaha! That is my ultimate defense; you will never be able to destroy it."

VOOM!!! Before anybody knew it, Ryu was in a cage.

Sasori laughed once again saying, "Ha! This puppet-machine doesn't just shoot kunai at my opponents; it has a tail that roams underground that looks for the opportune moment to lock up one of my enemies. Now I can take care of each of you one by one.

Again, Ryu could not break out of the cage he was in and now Kyozoku was all by herself to fight Sasori.

"Kyozoku, I can't break free! You're going to have to use that move!" Ryu shouted as Kyozoku dodged a few of Sasori's strikes.

"Alright! Shussui no Jutsu!" Kyozoku shouted. It only took a few seconds for the forest they were in to fill up with water twenty feet deep. The water rose up from the ground and everyone was inundated.

Kyozoku could see Sasori moving around in the water as if he were on land. But despite his swimming skills, he was much slower than before; this was Kyozoku's chance to attack. With all her strength, Kyozoku shouted inside the water, "TATEGAMI UNARI!!! Lion roar!"

With that, she screamed. Her voice was so powerful as each sound wave, enlarged by the water, traveled through the water and hit three targets: Sasori, Ryu's cage, and Sasori's puppet.

This was not all that Kyozoku's Jutsu was capable of. Through the water, chakra began to from the shape of many lions. Each lion grew large and they all glowed with a bright blue. After about fifty had formed, they all charged towards the three targets with great speed and power.

The lions would pass through the target leaving it more and more damaged than it was before the collision.

Ryu's cage shattered completely and he quickly swam to the surface. Sasori's puppet crumbled to pebbles leaving only a pile of kunai floating through the water. Sasori himself was the least hurt but he did sustain a good amount of damage. His whole body began to deteriorate as if it was rusting.

After the lions all attacked, the water disappeared and Sasori was there unable to move as easily as before.

"What did you do?" Sasori screamed in anger. Every time he moved one of his many joints, there was a sharp creaking sound as if it was about to snap.

Kyozoku smiled as Ryu ran back to her. "The lion's roar; one of my most powerful techniques; even though I can do it on land, it causes more damage underwater considering that the sound waves are amplified with the wave particles. I had three targets, and I needed you all within range; that's why I used the water. It slows you down and it causes more damage. That move is simply one of the many tricks we have with us; you won't be able to win. Even if you did manage to defeat us, it won't be long before your body rots away and decays. You will have nothing left. Either way, you go down."

"What a funny little girl." Sasori said. "After I defeat you two, it won't take long to return to the base and fix myself up in no time. I have countless parts that I may use at my disposal. Now you were able to defeat a simple stand that shot kunai, just pray that you will be ready for this: second tail."

The second part of the tail that was originally connected to the first formed itself into a huge sphere twice the size of Ryu's height. The ball was brown and had hundreds of tiny holes all around it.

The ball immediately began rolling towards Kyozoku and Ryu who were constantly dodging the kunai that the sphere shot randomly at them.

"Ryu how are we going to break this?" Kyozoku asked her friend.

"I can only think of one thing capable of doing this kind of job. We must thank Ketsu for teaching me this move." Ryu said stopping in his tracks allowing the huge ball to catch up to him about to roll over his body.

---

"Saru, well done." Kagai congratulated Saru as he entered the Shouten base with the scroll on his back.

"It was actually easier than I thought." Saru said still wondering why that was. He placed the scroll on a nearby table so Kagai could inspect it.

As Kagai opened it up, he saw that the scroll was almost completely blank. The only thing written on the inside read, "You didn't think I would hand it over so easily did you?"

With that read, the scroll turned into sand and fell to the floor.

Authors Note: Hey guys, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. The next one will have even more action. Don't forget, After this weapon, Sasori still has three more tails. I hope that I can get the chapter out soon but please don't expect too much. But keep checking and before you know it. Wala!


	23. Master of Puppets

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Chapter Twenty-Three: Master of Puppets

Hinata was able to save herself after she got back to the Akatsuki base.

"You're lucky you made it in time." Mihniopaksu said, "Just a few more minutes and you would have been gone forever."

The Akatsuki members were all fine now, but not in the condition to fight yet. They all gathered around forming a circle.

"Where is Sasori?" Itachi asked, being the leader of the group.

"He left. He went to chase after Naruto. His efforts are noble, but in the end, he's not coming back." Hinata said sighing.

"That's another one we've lost." Hidan stated. "Our plans really got screwed up big time with that Shouten group."

"Everyone must call out their name to see who's accounted for. I'll start with myself: Itachi."

"Hidan."

"Kakuzu."

"Deidara."

"Mihniopaksu."

"Hinata."

"Kisame."

"Due to lack of members, many of us do not have partners." Itachi said, stating the obvious. "You all know what we're to do at this point. It's time…to recruit. We must revert back to our original nine for the sake of time; however, just because we need three members, doesn't mean we will pick anybody. I'm going to pair of us up now. Hidan and Kakuzu will stay the same. Mihniopaksu and Deidara will also pair up. Kisame and I will be the third pair. Hinata, you will stay here and take care of the base. There you have it: three groups. Split up, and find one member each. They must be strong, smart, and willing to help as well as kill at any costs. Good luck." Itachi said as all the Akatsuki members scattered and Hinata stayed put.

---

"I'm so sorry Kagai! I did not know the scroll was a fake!" Saru bowed in grief and disbelief. That's why the task was so easy, the Kazekage allowed Saru to get it freely. Saru felt disappointed in himself.

Kagai's reaction was not one that Saru expected. "It's okay. We didn't want the scroll anyway; it was just a mission to prove your loyalty. In the end, you passed.

"How did you know I went to the right place?" Saru asked.

"We had Eight follow you disguised as your Shouten cloak." Kagai said.

Suddenly, Saru's cloak transformed back into his ally Eight.

"You did a good job kid; but next time your enemy won't be so willing to let you have what you're looking for. So remember that." Eight said.

"I'm wondering why Haku hasn't arrived yet." Kagai asked.

"Somebody else may have the body." Kiran said as his tall figure walked into the room.

"Damn it. Kyu's going to be really mad when he finds this out." Eight sighed.

"Who's Kyu?" Saru asked. Not realizing it was his leader's name.

"Kyu is our leader. We will allow you to know because you have completed your first mission. As we all said before, everything will be revealed to you in time." Kagai said.

"Kyu is not going to find out about this. Kagai, I want you and Saru to go track the body down." Kiran ordered.

Saru noticed that Kagai was a little reluctant to obey, but he then bowed politely and obliged. Saru followed Kagai out the base and into the forest.

---

"Bomu Rasengan!" Ryu shouted as a tiny sphere of chakra formed in Ryu's left hand. He drove it into the huge ball about to devour him causing a large explosion. The ball was sent back through the air flying high above the heads of all, despite its size and weight. Ryu on the other hand was knocked back from the force and Kyozoku managed to catch him.

All that was left of the large sphere was a pile of rubble just as big as when it was whole.

"How about you give us the next challenge?" Kyozoku asked smiling.

"Silly girl, didn't I say that each tail would be harder than the last? Was that really harder for you to do?" Sasori asked smiling. "No my dear fools; the battle yet from over."

Kyozoku and Ryu were not confused for long. They kept their eyes on the large pile of rubble and soon enough, it began to move.

Like a newborn phoenix rising from the ashes, the real puppet stood, just as big as the sphere it was in. The puppet was the most unique puppet Ryu and Kyozoku had ever seen before.

Its left arm was simply a huge cannon that could fire as big as people standing up. The right arm was skinnier than the rest of the body and was not proportional. The legs were long and thick, looking exactly like frog legs. The huge body led up to large shoulders which made the puppet look even more intimidating. The head floated in the air, just far enough above the shoulders to compensate the distance for the missing neck.

"That's the second tail." Sasori shouted through a very large grin.

"Ryu, I don't know how we can get past this." Kyozoku said fearing that they may not beat all the tails. "If the second tail is this strong, then how strong can the other three be?"

"In the end, it's one Akatsuki member against two Tennoushihai; don't doubt our abilities. Skill will triumph over machine; I have no doubt about that. We have to believe in ourselves Kyozoku. And that's when we will win." Ryu said giving his partner hope. "For now, let's just refrain from using our best tricks. Let's do our best to take him down with what we've got."

Kyozoku nodded and they both ran towards their new enemy.

---

Saru and Kagai were now far away from the base and Saru saw fit to ask his superior the question he had been dying to ask.

"Kagai, can I ask you a question?"

"Well isn't that already a question?"

"Why were you reluctant to listen to Kiran?" Saru finally asked.

Kagai smiled. "So you noticed eh? Well since I guess you can be trusted, I'll let you in on the secret. See, I may look human, but I'm not anymore."

"Anymore?" Saru questioned.

"A long time ago, before I was mostly machine, Kyu was gone away for a little while. Kiran decided that since he was the strongest, he would take charge. I didn't think of anybody else other than Kyu as my leader, so it was my decision to disobey the mission he gave me. Since I disrespected his authority in front of all of the Shouten, he took me aside one time, and he ripped my body to shreds. I healed myself as much as I could and sowed my beat up body back together again. My body barely functioned after that. I had to remain in a bed for a long time. Finally, Kyu came back from having accomplished his mission and he saw me so weak and pathetic. I told him what happened: that I disobeyed Kiran because I didn't think of him as my leader. That was a big mistake. Kyu screamed that the next strongest in line would be the leader if he was gone. For my disobedience my body was destroyed again. He lent me a small amount of his power to stay alive as I worked on making myself a cyborg in order to live. Now I am about eighty percent machine all because I decided to disobey Kiran once. I don't like him, but I have to respect his command. Kiran is and always will be stronger than me. I am only as strong as I built myself while his skill surpasses all the rest. I've seen Kiran at his best, and I can definitely say that I would not like to fight him again. He can get stronger, I can't." Kagai said.

Saru was amazed at the story he just heard. But he had another question that arose in his mind. "What mission did Kyu go to accomplish?"

Kagai smiled, "You can know his name, but you cannot know the purpose he serves yet. His goals will remain unknown to you for now."

Saru sighed and stayed quiet.

---

"Mihniopaksu, where are we going?" Deidara asked following his comrade.

"Before Zetsu died, he told me of an acquaintance that he had and where to find him. I trust my old partner's judgment, and that's who we're going to recruit." Mihniopaksu explained.

"What's this guy's name?" Deidara asked.

"Tobi."

"And what does this Tobi have that makes him qualified for the Akatsuki?"

Mihniopaksu shook his head. "I'm not so sure at this point, but all I know is that he's the one."

Deidara sighed and followed his partner to an area full of volcanoes.

"Tobi lives here?" Deidara asked in disgust.

"Apparently he does. He should be in the first volcano we see.

Sure enough, he was. Mihniopaksu and Deidara reached the top of the volcano and looked down through the hole to see a man that was standing not on lava but on rock looking up right back at them.

"Are you Tobi?" Mihniopaksu shouted down.

The man had no answer he simply put his hands together and in an instant, the volcano erupted.

Mihniopaksu was alert and ready for anything; he put his hand down into the volcanic hole and shouted, "Sekisho no Jutsu!"

A water barrier appeared covering the large hole. The lava hit the water and immediately turned to rock closing off the only opening of the volcano.

"Well done." The man said appearing right beside the two Akatsuki members. He wore a mask that had lines that all swirled around the single hole where his right eye was. Even though the hole was there, his right eye was still not visible.

"Are you Tobi?" Deidara asked this time.

"Who wants to know?" The man asked.

"We are friends with Zetsu; I believe he is an acquaintance of yours. We are both from the same organization as him: the Aka-" Mihniopaksu was interrupted as the man finished his sentence.

"Akatsuki I know. In that case, I am Tobi. But why didn't Zetsu come instead of you two?" Tobi asked.

"He's dead." Deidara said harshly. "We need three members and we two have decided to recruit you. I can already see that you're strong. What was that move back there?"

"Oh, I'm just good with fire, that's all." Tobi said changing back to the subject at hand. "So you want me to be a part of the Akatsuki is that it?"

"That is correct. In the end it is your decision to say yes or no." Mihniopaksu said.

"Alright, I'll join you guys, for Zetsu's sake." Tobi said as all three Akatsuki members left back for the base.

---

Ryu and Kyozoku did not have it easy at all. Still they had no idea how they were going to defeat their enemy at this rate.

"We only have one thing left to help us before using our best moves." Kyozoku said reaching into her pocket. She pulled out two small blue pills and handed one to Ryu.

"Brilliant, the chakra pills!" Ryu shouted. They both quickly ate the pill as their chakra grew to enormous levels surrounding their bodies completely.

"Now concentrate the chakra to your body." Ryu said.

"I know." Kyozoku replied, closing her eyes.

Sasori witnessed as his two opponents readied themselves. Ryu concentrated all his chakra to his fists as Kyozoku did the same with her legs.

They both opened their eyes at the same time and disappeared into the air.

Kyozoku reappeared at the same level as the puppet's head kicking it with all her strength. The head was sent flying to the ground leaving a crater under it.

Ryu appeared at the puppet's chest constantly punching it until it fell to the ground.

Sasori was furious. "Do you think a simple pill could stop me? THIRD TAIL!!!"

The third portion of Sasori's tail unfolded to be a huge sword fit for the puppet Kyozoku and Ryu were fighting. The sword had a normal-sized handle for the puppet's size but the blade was the weird part. It was actually two blades placed very closely together.

The puppet grabbed the sword, and stood back up as the head went back to its position as well. The puppet brought the sword next to its head with the blade facing outwards and not to the sides. It blew air from the mouth area through the two blades creating a whistling sound so intense and sharp it brought Kyozoku and Ryu to the ground.

"Kyozoku, stop it from doing that!" Ryu shouted clenching his teeth.

"Tategami Unari!!!" Kyozoku shouted this time creating lions just as big as the puppet itself.

All fifty lions ran towards the puppet with great speed. The first three chakra lions penetrated the puppet and knocked it back a few steps. Already the exterior of the puppet was beginning to deteriorate.

However, before the other forty seven lions could attack, the puppet regained its stance and took over. It sword turned at the handle until both blades were facing outwards from each other with the handle in the middle.

With this new weapon, the puppet sliced through each of the chakra lions with ease, destroying each one of them.

"That trick won't work again!" Sasori shouted.

"Kyozoku, I'm sorry, but you have to use it." Ryu said.

"Why is it always me that has to do everything?" Kyozoku asked.

"Because I have to save my best move for the final tails. If I use mine now, yours might not be enough to take the last one down." Ryu said. "Please, just do it."

----

"Are you sure you want to recruit _him_?" Hidan asked reluctantly. "I don't know if you remember, but our last encounter with him almost cost us our lives. That's because we fought him two on one!"

"Exactly, he's perfect. He's ruthless, cold, and very skilled." Kakuzu replied. "Tetsukawa Ryoku, here we come."

"Kakuzu, we're going to have to fight him again aren't we?" Hidan asked.

"Probably, he never goes without a battle. To him, that's the only way he can trust anyone. Killing is his nature, lucky for you, you're already dead. Now remember, our purpose is to recruit him, so don't take it too far." Kakuzu explained.

"I wonder how much stronger he's gotten since we last fought him." Hidan said smiling. "I'm a little scared yet excited. If we recruit him, he'll definitely be the strongest of the Akatsuki, even past Itachi."

"Are you kidding me? Itachi isn't the strongest just because he's the leader. Sasori has surpassed him after he had that upgrade. Don't you remember when he showed us everything he had up his sleeve? Hinata said Sasori isn't coming back, but I believe otherwise. He is stronger than she thinks." Kakuzu said.

"Hey Kakuzu, who do you think is stronger between us two?" Hidan asked.

"We've been through this before; I would kill you in the end." Kakuzu said.

Hidan scoffed, "Oh don't you wish. I think I would win if we turned against each other."

"Think what you want, I only care about recruiting Ryoku." Kakuzu stated. "Now he should be here."

They had both arrived to a small village. They entered a sake shop and there he was.

"Tetsukawa Ryoku, it has definitely been a long time." Kakuzu said acquiring his attention.

Ryoku had light blue spiky hair and green eyes. He was at a young age like twenty eight and as he stood up, he was very tall. Ryoku was quite skinny but muscular as well. He wore a light-colored vest and pants that reached down a little past his knees. He also wore casual ninja sandals. Ryoku had a few things that were unique about him such as that he had a diamond tattoo on top of his left hand. On the top of his right hand there was a tattoo of an ice shard.

"Kakuzu and Hidan! It has been a long time. What brings you here to these parts? I know you are not just passing by." Ryoku asked. He spoke in a deep but cheery voice.

All three of them stepped outside and Kakuzu said, "The Akatsuki has unfortunately fallen short of a few members. So our current mission is to recruit strong people to help us get back on track again. We know that you're the man for the job."

Ryoku smiled innocently, "Come on Kakuzu, you cannot expect me to grant you a huge favor such as this after not talking for so many years. How about we make a bargain? Let's talk like men do, not with our mouths, but with our fists. If you two can beat me in a battle, I will do you this favor and devote my life to the Akatsuki. But if you two lose, then you will both devote your lives to me. How does that sound?"

"Done." Kakuzu said quickly before Hidan could object.

"Um…Kakuzu, can I speak with you for a moment?" Hidan still persisted.

After pulling him aside, Hidan said, "Why are you agreeing to this? He has a really good chance of winning and I'm pretty sure I don't want to devote my life to him."

"Have no fear Hidan; Akatsuki will never let us leave. They will chase us down and kill us on sight, that way you won't have to deal with being his slave for very long. Cheer up. I know we can beat this guy. We beat him before and we can beat him again. Just remember what he used last time and you'll be fine. He can access an unlimited amount of diamond and ice and mold it anyway he likes with his chakra." Kakuzu said trying to bring Hidan at peace.

They all left outside of the village a few miles where there was nothing but desert.

"So shall we begin?" Ryoku asked.

---

Kyozoku wanted to use her special move before the pill's effect wore off, now was the time.

"Let's warm up a little first." Kyozoku said. She opened both of her hands where two water spheres were created that looked similar to the rasengan. The water was spinning just like the charka in the rasengan but in this case the water was spinning one direction.

Kyozoku threw the spheres at the puppet with immense force. The spheres were simply destroyed by the huge sword leaving it all wet.

But Kyozoku did not stop, she continually created water ball after water ball until she had begun to make some progress. The puppet was being sent back in its steps from the force of the spheres. Eventually, when Kyozoku had stopped throwing, all she had accomplished in the end, was that her enemy was completely soaked.

She stood on top of a boulder and extended her hands outwards towards the huge puppet. She closed her eyes and said slowly but loudly, "Mizu….Seishi no Jutsu!"

Suddenly, blue-clear strings attached from all over the puppet's body, to all ten of Kyozoku's fingers. She now was in control of Sasori's machine and began to move it at her own disposal.

"How are you doing that?" Sasori asked completely astonished.

"This is my strongest Jutsu. It may not look like much, but I can do anything I want to with this. It is not a state of mind that I have control, but simply movement. Will power has no deciding factor in this Jutsu. No matter how strong an opponent is, I will always be able to control them." Kyozoku explained.

"Normally," She began again, "This Jutsu is performed against real organisms that are actually alive. The reason for that is because organisms, especially humans, which are composed of seventy percent water. You see the whole element that allows me to take control, is the water itself. In a normal human, I would simply attach these strings, which are made up of water and chakra mixed together, to their bodies and have complete control inside and out. This Jutsu allows me to gain control of anything that has water on it or if it is water itself, I can regulate that as well. In this case, I had to soak the whole puppet to gain control but you get the concept. There is no use trying to break the strings because my fingers are keeping the water and chakra mixed together. What's really going on in these strings is that I am exerting water constantly from my fingers and simply mixing the chakra with the water. So the water is constantly moving towards my puppet which keeps it wet and prevents it from drying out. So to try and cut the strings would be futile for the fact that the water would simply get back in line again and continue to keep the puppet soaked." Kyozoku explained.

"The reason this is so hard to do, is because, it not only takes a lot of chakra to keep this water cycle going, but it also takes a lot from my mind considering I am not a natural puppet user. I realize this is not the most suitable technique to be using against you, but I think it's time you had some of your own medicine. So now that you finally know how it works, there's something else I'd like to show you what I'm capable of." Kyozoku said as she squinted her eyes and concentrated.

The puppet went from being completely soaked to completely frozen. It stood as still as a stone and even gave off a small amount of smoke from the ice.

Kyozoku spread her arms wide and BOOM, the puppet shattered into hundreds of tiny ice pieces all over the floor. Kyozoku fell to her knees in fatigue and looked up at her partner. "Mission accomplished Ryu. He's all yours. Good luck." With that she walked back a few steps to let Ryu deal with the last two tails.

"I'm not going to lie. That was quite impressive, but it's over for you now." Sasori began. "You are only one person now and your partner is too weak to continue. The next two tails work as a duo; together, their teamwork makes it practically impossible to take them down. It won't be long before both of you are killed. After that, I'll simply follow Naruto and kill his brother. Then it will be mission accomplished for me as soon as I return Naruto back to our base. Fourth and fifth tail."

---

"Back in his prime days, he was very famous for his strength. Now, he is believed to be dead my most. I stumbled upon him a few months ago and kept him in mind. Our only hope now is for him to join us. He will definitely be a strong hand as well as a good use for our organization." Itachi said as him and Kisame traveled into a mountainous terrain.

"What village was he from?" Kisame asked.

"Konoha."

It was a few more minutes before Kisame saw what Itachi had described to him earlier: A small shack hidden between two narrow mountains close together. There were trees that also aided in the hidden location.

They traveled up to the shack and entered the building to find a man in his middle ages with all silver hair. He wore the regular Konoha shinobi uniform and sat down on the floor alone sipping a cup of tea.

He looked up at the two intruders who had simply barged in his abode. "Who are you?" He asked.

"We came to make you a deal old man." Itachi said.

"There is nothing I want in this world, I can accept no bargain." The old man said.

"Is that so? You wouldn't even want to see your own son one last time?" Itachi asked.

"My son? I don't know what you're talking about." The man said looking down at the floor taking another sip of his tea.

"We're wasting our time Itachi, this man has already lost his mind." Kisame said.

Itachi ignored him and still persisted, "Yes, your son. I'm sure you remember him. He is known far and wide as the Great Copy Ninja. His name…is Hatake Kakashi."

The man's eyes widened as he repeated his son's name. "Hatake…Kakashi…"

"Hatake Sakumo, Konoha's White Fang, listen to our proposition." Itachi said softly.

Sakumo looked up at Itachi and Kisame and asked, "What is it that you propose?"

---

"It has definitely been a while since we have fought, but I think last time was simply a stage for me. Witness me now, at the strongest I've ever been." Ryoku said.

Hidan put his right foot down on the desert crust and began to draw a circle. The bottom of his sandal had ink on it so the circle was nice and dark. Inside the circle he drew a perfect triangle whose three points touched the edge of the circle.

"Still in that insane religion I see." Ryoku said to Hidan after he had completed his circle.

"Still use the power of diamond and ice I see." Kakuzu said referring to Ryoku's tattoos.

Ryoku smiled, "Ah yes, but now I've become a lot better at controlling them. I think you'll be quite impressed at how much I've improved.

"Yeah, yeah, let's just get this battle over with so we can beat you already." Hidan said as he prepared his huge scythe that had three blades.

"Don't be so sure of that!" Ryoku shouted as he ran towards Hidan.

Hidan's scythe had a rope at the very bottom that was also connected to his waist. He threw his deadly weapon towards his enemy attempting to inflict damage.

Ryoku put his right hand out as if to stop the blade from coming towards him. Suddenly a huge ice block was created and the scythe hit the ice and got stuck in it instead of hitting Ryoku.

Now Hidan was tied to his scythe which was tied to the ice so he had limited range of movement. Ryoku took advantage of this limitation and went around the ice blockade and pulled Hidan in towards him from the rope. Hidan's body flew directly at Ryoku's fist.

However, before Hidan and Ryoku could collide, many strange black tendrils flew from the direction of Kakuzu attempting to bind Ryoku. Ryoku was to fast for that so he jumped back out of the way allowing Hidan to collide with the ice block instead.

Hidan got back up from the collision and pulled out his weapon with a little difficulty. "Oh smart guy huh?"

"I already know the way you fight Hidan, and I won't be tricked by you like last time." Ryoku said. He looked at Kakuzu who had already removed his Akatsuki cloak. "I can see you are taking this seriously Kakuzu."

"Of course I am." Kakuzu said. "Do you think I want to be your slave?"

Kakuzu's skin tone was pail and he was wearing a sleeveless shirt that showed his arms which had black stitches all over it as if he were a doll.

"Hidan, I want you to stop play around." Kakuzu said commandingly. "The only way we can get him to lose is if he gets caught in your trap. I will distract him while you focus on drawing his blood."

"What do you think I'm trying to figure out genius?" Hidan shouted angrily. "It's not as easy as it looks being the slowest on in the group and all."

Kakuzu did not respond; instead he chased after his opponent who was waiting for the next move. The next few incidents happened so fast they took only a matter of seconds.

Kakuzu reached a few feet from Ryoku and jumped a little in the air swinging his right fist down at his opponent's face.

BAM! Kakuzu's face did not hit Ryoku's face, but an ice ball which he shattered under the force of his attack. BAM, BAM, BAM!!! Three more punches to Ryoku's body but the same results occurred, ice was always there to block the way.

After those four swift punches, Ryoku grabbed Kakuzu harshly by the neck with his left hand, and put his open palm directly on Kakuzu's face. Suddenly, the Kakuzu's head was completely covered in ice obstructing him from breathing.

Ryoku ducked down and swung his leg around sweeping Kakuzu completely off his feet. While still crouched on all fours, Ryoku jumped to his right avoiding Hidan's large scythe that hit the spot where he just was.

Ryoku stood up on his two legs and pointed down to Kakuzu who still could not breathe. Four sharp icicles shot up from the ground each of them piercing different locations in Kakuzu's chest.

"Kakuzu!" Hidan shouted running out of his circle retracting his scythe. "Damn it! How hard can it be to draw blood? Die!!!"

Hidan finally reached Ryoku as he swung his weapon downwards vertically from above his head. Ryoku simply caught the scythe at the handle and shot a large ice ball at Hidan sending him backwards many feet.

"I already know your tricks, and like I said before, I won't be fooled again." Ryoku said. "As I recall, you need the blood of your opponent to perform your so called, 'sacred ritual'. Well I won't let you take a single drop of my blood. And if you do, then you'll have to deal with killing your partner as well." Ryoku crouched down and swiped some blood off of Kakuzu's chest.

"What are you doing?!" Hidan shouted in place.

Ryoku did not hesitate, he took his finger and licked Kakuzu's blood and swallowed it. He smiled saying, "Now, your ally is a part of me. Hurt me, and you'll hurt him as well. Kill me, and you'll destroy his last remaining heart. I destroyed four out of five."

Kakuzu jumped up with his whole head soaked from the water he melted with a fire Jutsu. "Luckily…" he began weakly, "You didn't destroy the heart I use for fire, so I was able to take that ice mask off of myself."

"Look at this, a minute into the battle and both of you cannot do anything." Ryoku said.

"Shut up! I'll kill you! I won't be your slave no matter what!" Hidan shouted. He jumped back to the circle and immediately, his skin began to change color. His complexion became completely black with white stripes here and there.

"Like I said before, if you hurt me, you'll hurt-" Ryoku stopped in mid-sentence as he clutched his stomach in pain.

There Hidan was, with his own scythe stabbed into him. "Hurts doesn't it? I'm feeling it too!"

Ryoku watched as Kakuzu walked away from him perfectly fine without pain. "How are you without pain?" Ryoku asked still on the ground.

Hidan smiled as his scythe was still inside of himself. "You still don't know do you? It was all part of the plan and it worked after all. First of all I wouldn't attack out of pure anger. I knew you would dodge my scythe but that was only a distraction. Right after you moved, you didn't notice when I cut through your shirt with a kunai and scraped the very tip of your chest just enough so I could take a drop of blood. That was all I needed to do my ritual. Now, it's not that I want you with us in the Akatsuki, but what Kakuzu says is completely true: you would be useful to us. Now keep your end of the bargain and devote your life to being an Akatsuki member."

Ryoku looked up and said, "What makes you think you've won?"

"Simple." Hidan said as he took his scythe out of his abdominal region and put it through his left leg.

Ryoku screamed in pain for a second and then breathed deeply trying to ignore the pain.

"So, will you join? There is nothing else you can do." Kakuzu asked breathing deeply as well.

Ryoku stood up despite the pain he was in and smiled. "If you think you have me cornered, then you're gravely mistaken. But there is no point to dispute over this now. Yes I will join the Akatsuki."

"Good, then let's head back." Kakuzu said.

---

"So do we have a deal?" Itachi asked. "We'll lead you to your son again as long as you pledge your allegiance to us."

"My services are yours." Sakumo said as all three of them head back to the Akatsuki base.

---

The two puppets sprung out faster than any of the other tail pieces. Both of them were a little shorter than Ryu and they were skinny with a sword each.

Ryu didn't get a good look at them because as soon as they unfolded they were already attacking.

One puppet disappeared and reappeared behind Ryu attempting to decapitate him. Ryu barely managed to whip around and block the attack but he wasn't fast enough the block the kick from the second puppet.

The kick was so powerful, Ryu felt like he was flying. Both puppets caught up to him while he was still in the air and attacked him with their swords.

Ryu thought he did a good job by blocking every single hit from both of them. But before his hopes could go any higher, his staff fell to about fifty tiny pieces on the ground. Ryu was completely appalled. His feeling of surprise dulled his reflects for only just a moment which was exactly when he hit a tree breaking the trunk with the force.

Ryu stood back up and he felt his back pop in pain. "That's it; I have to get serious before I lose my life." He said to himself. He removed his large jacket to reveal the vest that he wore. The vest carried all different kinds of weapons in many different pockets all over the place.

Covering his arms were steel plates that fit him so that he could move with ease. He removed a pair of black nunchucks and swung them in a circular motion fiercely.

It was only a few seconds before one of the puppets appeared above Ryu and the other behind him. He jumped forward many feet whirling around as he blocked a sword attack from the puppet behind him. The one that was above him reached the ground, disappeared, and reappeared behind his new position.

Ryu ducked down avoiding a swing to the head. He took his weapon and wrapped it around the puppet's leg, and pulled forcing the puppet to trip and fall to the ground. Ryu dashed off attempting to avoid the puppet that was still left standing.

Ryu was already panting for air as he continued the constant cycle blocking and running. He couldn't seem to change his defensive position to offensive.

It was nightfall now and finally, the pill's effect had long been worn off, and his body was already tired out. Ryu didn't know what else to do except his last resort.

Now his tactic was not defensive, but simply to run away from the two puppets. So he took off as fast as he could, all the way back to the start of the battle. There Sasori was, and Ryu ran right under him.

"Big mistake fool!" Sasori shouted as the two puppets came on opposite sides of each other. Now Ryu was trapped between the two puppets in front of and behind him, as well as Sasori's long spider-like legs to his right and left.

"You have nowhere left to run!" Sasori shouted as the two puppets raised their swords to strike.

"Who said I was going to run away?" Ryu said as he formed a hand seal quickly and whispered to himself, "Kokugen no Jutsu."

Time stopped for everybody except Ryu who looked around to make sure everything was still.

He stopped for a moment, staring at all of his opponents who were within arms length away from him. His face became sincere and he said, "Rikou Haburi, this is for you. Akarui Nanatsu Touken!!!"

Ryu lifted his right arm straight up in the air. ZOOM, ZOOM, ZOOM, ZOOM, ZOOM, ZOOM, ZOOM! What seemed like seven bright stars appeared high in the dark sky.

All seven glowing figures raced down from the sky straight at Ryu's three opponents faster than the speed of sound. The seven glowing figures were seven different swords that pierced Sasori and his two puppets.

Time began again, and their bodies began to deteriorate.

"What is going on?!" Sasori asked in amazement.

Ryu fell to his knees in exhaustion. "I…just killed you."

"What kind of technique is this?" Sasori demanded.

"My best one, that's all you need to know." Ryu said as the last of Sasori disappeared into thin air along with the two puppets.

Ryu stood up slowly and weakly and walked over to Kyozoku who was still conscious. "Well done Ketsu. I see you stopped time longer this time around." She commented.

"I had to or they would have got to me first." Ryu said weakly. "Do you remember when I used that against Ketsu?"

"Of course, it was one of the most terrifying moments of my life. I've only seen you use that three times now, and nobody's ever survived it." Kyozoku said.

"All that matters now is that we finished our job and Ketsu and Naruto are safe. We should hurry back to them." Ryu said.

Kyozoku stood up and they both began walking at a very slow pace. "I wonder," Kyozoku began. "If every Akatsuki member is this strong, how strong is Naruto really?"

---

Naruto was now perfectly rested and so was his brother right beside him. Ketsu and Naruto had been discussing all that they knew about the Shouten. It wasn't long after before they were greeted by Kagai and Saru.

"We came to take you back ourselves." Kagai said with a smirk.

"You look just like the man that killed my sensei…" Ketsu said staring directly into Saru's eyes.

Saru looked at Ketsu and felt as if his soul was being stared into. "You must be confusing me with my brother Sora." Saru said attempting to avoid Ketsu's stare.

"Sora…now I remember, that was his name." Ketsu said allowing his mind to wander off to the past.

"Who are you?" Naruto said assertively.

Kagai smiled this time saying, "We are elite shinobi from a small organization that goes by the name Shouten. Our leader has plans with you Uzumaki…Naruto."

"You won't be able to take both of us on." Naruto said.

"Now we'll see about that won't we?" Kagai challenged. "Saru, go…now." He demanded.

Saru turned back from where he came and dashed off. Ketsu attempted to follow him but Kagai stood in his way removing his large black cloak. "Your opponent here is me."

Kagai wore a tight suit just like everybody else in the Shouten, but his body was nowhere near normal. First of all Kagai was short and chunky, second of all, most of his body was made up of metal.

"Don't worry," Naruto calmed Ketsu. "We'll catch up to that little boy soon enough. Let's take care of him first."

Ketsu nodded and prepared his fighting stance.

"Now, let's see how strong the Shouten really is." Naruto said smiling.

Authors Note: I'm not sure when the next chapter will come out but please R&R!


	24. Hatred

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Chapter Twenty-Four: Hatred

Kagai only had small worthless tricks up his sleeve which were completely useless against the skill of Naruto and Ketsu.

"Is this all that you have?" Naruto asked disappointed.

"I was never meant for battle at any time of my life. I am only as good I have made myself. I have a few more tricks up my sleeve. Allow me to show you." Kagai sighed.

Kagai took a deep breath that made his stomach expand so big it looked like he had a huge cannon ball inside it. He took both of his fists and punched his stomach as hard as he could, throwing an air bubble at his opponents.

The air bubble quickly hit the wall as both Naruto and Ketsu dodged. The cave wall crumbled from the force allowing sunlight to enter.

"As I breathe in a considerable amount of air, my body functions to compress it with energy and I spew it out with an immense force that can cause a catastrophic effect. But that's not all that technique can do." Kagai said she he opened his right hand up to reveal a small mechanical hole. The hole worked exactly like a lighter that created a flame to linger there in his palm.

Again he breathed in a lot of air and with his right hand out in front of him and his left hand pounding on his belly he spewed out the air bubble that came in contact with the fire to create a large fireball. He continued this with such speed that soon enough the cave was completely gone and trees around them were beginning to catch fire.

"I guess that's not going to work…" Kagai said softly. "Very well then, I'll try this." He pounded his left palm into the ground as hundreds of metal sharp rods shot up from the ground spaced about one foot apart from each other. Naruto and Ketsu both were able to dodge those as well.

"I guess that didn't work…" Kagai stated a little sad. "Well how about this?"

Both of his hands folded into his wrists revealing two guns. He fired five bullets per second in each hand shooting out small pebbles that exploded as soon as they touched anything.

With the sharp silver rods in the way, it made it much harder to dodge this attack but Naruto and Ketsu still managed to do so.

"Now it's our turn to attack. I'm tired of being on the defensive side for nothing." Naruto said.

"If you want a challenge, then you should have said so. Let's see if you can handle all three at the same time." Kagai said.

He shot fireballs and exploding pebbles at a much faster pace this time. BOOM!!! Suddenly, a lightning strike came from the sky striking a single metal rod that happened to be touching Ketsu. The lightning bolt shocked him and stunned him for a single second which gave Kagai enough time to strike him with a fire ball and twenty exploding pebbles. Ketsu landed on the floor out of the area with the metal rods completely weak and almost unconscious.

"Ketsu!" Naruto shouted reaching outwards towards his brother. BAM! Naruto was also struck with a fire ball. He quickly stood up and dodged a few lightning bolts that struck near him. He had to make his way to Kagai and fast.

Right before he reached his opponent Hundreds of lightning bolts jolted down at the direction of every single metal rod. Naruto lifted his palms up at the lightning rushing towards him and shouted, "DOUKA NO JUTSU!!!"

All of the lightning hit his hands but instead of hurting him it formed into a large yellow ball full of electricity. Kagai spewed a fireball from his mouth but the attack diminished against the even bigger ball of electricity that Naruto drove directly into Kagai's body.

Kagai was completely paralyzed for all except his eyes and mouth. He sighed in great sadness as he realized that he had failed his mission. "It seems I was never meant for fighting after all…"

Naruto walked up to him slowly and drove his fist into Kagai's heart quickly ending his life. Ketsu witnessing this screamed in anger and disagreement.

Naruto ran back to his brother who was now in tears. "YOU IDIOT!!! WE COULD HAVE EXTRACTED INFROMATION FROM HIM. NOW HOW ARE WE SUPPOSED TO FIND OUT ANYTHING?! THE OTHER BOY IS GONE WHO YOU SAID TO LEAVE ALONE!!! YOU MAY HAVE RUINED MY CHANCES FOR REVENGE!!!" Ketsu screamed at the top of his lungs.

"He would not have told us anything…" Naruto said sadly full of regret.

"You don't know that!" Ketsu shouted once again. He stood up despite the pain he was in and punched the ground five times creating a large hole.

"Calm down Ketsu I'm sorry!" Naruto said grabbing Ketsu's arm.

Ketsu drove a Rasengan into Naruto body sending him into a nearby tree. "Don't you dare tell me to calm down Naruto! Jiraiya was like a father to me and I can't let him die in vain! I have to get my revenge, and it's been more than three years now and haven't got much closer to it! You killed out mother so you're lucky I'm not doing anything to you! My mother and my father are gone!"

Naruto stood up after catching his breath. His air was knocked completely out of him as he simply watched Ketsu walk around destroying trees with brute force.

Ryu and Kyozoku had finally returned and witnessed Kagai's dead bleeding body and the destruction all around them and rushed to Ketsu and Naruto. They were both fine now and so were the Uzumaki brothers. They both explained to each other what had happened.

Finally, after their stories, Ketsu stood up with impatience. "I can't take this anymore! I'm going to find that boy! He is our only hope of find out more about the Shouten since Naruto had to go and kill off our best information source! Damn it!"

"Ketsu, don't do anything stupid!" Naruto said standing up after him. Again Ketsu attempted to drive a Rasengan into Naruto's stomach but Naruto caught Ketsu's wrist and tightened his grip hurting Ketsu's hand.

"The first time…I let you, because I believed I deserve it. But now you are just taking it over the top. I'm telling you now Ketsu, act your age, and calm down." Naruto said calmly but with a somewhat threatening tone.

"Who do you think you are to boss me around like that huh?" Ketsu asked as Naruto released his very tight grip on his wrist. "You don't know how I feel, how can you? You didn't experience this pain. You don't know what it's like to have a person you love so much taken away from you! So how can you possible know how I feel?!" Ketsu shouted.

"You're right! I don't know how you feel. I don't know what it's like to have someone I love so much disappear and be dead. I don't know what it's like to have a father's love one moment, and then taken away the next. But I can tell you that I would rather have a father's love for a second than without ever having it. You know what it's like to have it and loose it, but I never experienced that love in the first place. I never belonged with anyone! So I don't see the reason why you must complain so much when I never complain…" Naruto said.

Ketsu stayed silent for a moment looking at Ryu and Kyozoku who were speechless. But in the end his anger overcame him. "Damn this! I can't take it anymore; I have to go find that boy no matter what!"

"Don't do anything stupid Ketsu!" Naruto shouted.

"Don't tell me what to do! Leave me alone, all of you!" Ketsu said dashing off in the direction Saru headed about half an hour ago.

"Ketsu-" Naruto was cut off by Kyozoku.

"Leave him Naruto; he needs to cool off for a little while." She said.

"I just don't want anything to happen to him. Even though he's older than me I still feel as if I have to take care of him. I was raised by the Akatsuki; he was raised by Jiraiya, and look whose throwing tantrums." Naruto explained.

"He'll come back within a few hours. He's done this before, there's no calming him when it comes to him getting his revenge." Ryu said.

"He won't find him, that boy left about half an hour ago." Naruto said.

"Wait…what boy?" Ryu asked.

"He was a small child that was also part of the organization. He had brown spiky hair and a rock arm." Naruto explained.

Ryu clenched his fist and squinted his eyes. "Saru…his brother not only killed Ketsu's master, but he himself killed mine. I also have a bone to pick with that boy. He will definitely pay for what he did…"

"I have a feeling, that things are reaching a critical point in time. There is definitely a storm coming…" Naruto said looking at the dark sky blocking the sun.

---

Ketsu knew inside that he would never catch up to the boy that left, but he didn't want to give up. However, soon enough, he was exhausted and also had no idea where he was going. He was completely lost as a matter of fact.

It wasn't too long before Ketsu encountered an old foe. "It appears that Saru was being followed after all." A nearby voice said.

The voice came from a tree which transformed into the only human that could shape shift, Eight.

"Where is he?" Ketsu asked furiously.

Eight smiled showing all of his pointy teeth. "Wow, vicious aren't we? I'm sorry but I won't be able to tell you that. As soon as I capture you, I will have Uzumaki at my feet ready to do anything to have you spared. So I think it was lucky that I found you."

"Ignorance, I never got a chance to fight you before, but today I will, and you will tell me all I need to know or you will die." Ketsu said.

"How do you know my name?" Eight asked.

"I remember it from a very long time ago. The first time I saw you, you told me your actual name was ignorance but they called you Eight after the eight deadliest sin." Ketsu said.

"That is a great memory you have, accompanied with just as big a threat." Eight smirked.

"I never forget the face of my enemy. I don't threaten people unless I have to. Tell me what I need to know and we don't have to fight." Ketsu offered.

Eight laughed, "Ha! You obviously don't understand, I need you to get your brother. Fighting you is simply a plus. I love the feeling of death, the smell of blood, I just adore fighting; especially a strong opponent. Now I can already tell by your killing intent that this is definitely going to be fun. I'm glad Saru came and told me to check if anyone was following him; because now I will be the one to get you and your brother."

"Very well, then I will beat the information out of you." Ketsu said as he took a deep breath to calm himself. "If there's one thing I learned in fighting it's that I need to stay calm." He said out loud.

"That is a smart tactic most times but not all the time. Now the question is, who's going to attack first?" Eight asked.

However before he could even finish the question, Ketsu was already in action. He stayed calm, but the Bunshin behind his opponent was now rushing towards him.

Eight detected the movement and ducked as the Bunshin flew over his head. He grabbed the Bunshin's foot and crushed the ankle. _Poof_! The Bunshin was gone, and so was Ketsu.

Eight smiled once more saying, "A diversion; interesting. I wonder what you'll do next."

Suddenly, two hands launched up from underground right next to Eight's feet. Both of Ketsu's hands that came up were holding kunai which were driven directly into Eight's feet, holding him in place with the ground.

Ketsu then came up to his waist and took to more kunai and stabbed the back for Eight's legs. Eight fell to his knees while his feet were still pinned to the ground. Finally, Ketsu jumped completely out of the ground, and delivered a rasengan straight to the back of Eight's head.

Eight's face collided with the ground and created an imprint on the hard dirt with the force from the attack. Ketsu jumped back and stared intensely at his opponent while being alert to his surroundings.

Eight lay there for a few moments before he stood up. When he did get up, Ketsu could see that his face was mostly bloody but nothing was broken, just cut up. As soon as Eight stood on his two feet, he fell back down to his feet again.

Ketsu smiled at him saying, "I pierced the back of your legs so you won't be able to stand for long moments at a time. So basically your legs are completely useless in this battle."

"Not quite." Eight said as he pulled the four kunai out from his body throwing them on the ground. "Not bad kid."

"The name is Uzumaki Ketsu. Remember it, because I'm going to be the one that kills you. I swear it!" Ketsu shouted rushing at his opponent.

Eight jumped upside down on his hands and spun around extremely fast with his legs straight out so that they were horizontal and parallel to the ground. His legs then shape shifted to two blades and he was now spinning so fast that he was like one constant moving blade.

Ketsu barely managed to jump over Eight's legs and while in the air, he threw a kunai with an exploding tag down towards Eight.

Eight moved slightly to the side so that the kunai was reflected directly back to Ketsu and hit him in the back.

Ketsu grabbed the kunai from his back and threw it as far as he could before it exploded which wasn't very far. The explosion still managed to send Ketsu flying backwards toward his opponent.

Eight took advantage of this moment as he stopped spinning and stabbed Ketsu in the stomach who stopped flying backwards. Blood quickly left Ketsu's body who got back on his feet clutching his stomach in pain. A green light quickly appeared sealing the wound allowing Ketsu to continue the fight without worrying about the excessive bleeding.

"Not…bad…" Ketsu said gritting his teeth.

Eight smiled. "It seems that your healing is not exactly top notch. Although it is enough to keep you going, you are still feeling the pain. You probably only healed the outside of the wound so you have enough time to escape and treat it. But I'm guessing that's not what you're going to do. You will die if you leave that untouched you know."

"If you care so much then why don't you tell me what I need to know?" Ketsu asked still gritting his teeth.

"Because that would take all the fun out of this battle. Please do not tell me you don't have anything else up your sleeves." Eight said standing up as if he was perfectly fine.

"How are you doing that?" Ketsu asked completely appalled.

"You obviously underestimate me. Uzumaki Ketsu, I would not be in the Shouten if I were so weak." Eight said.

"Your friend Kagai died pretty easily if you ask me." Ketsu said harshly.

Eight's enlightened face suddenly turned a bit angry. "So the old man's dead? I can't say I'm too happy about that. Kagai is a Shouten member because he is a genius. But he was not a fighter. The rest of us are; and I can tell you that we should not be underestimated. As I can already tell, you don't truly understand the concept of shape shifting. Allow me to explain."

Eight began walking toward Ketsu slowly saying, "All shape shifting is, is a microscopic science. It's easy to understand once you know the basics. So…BASICALLY, shape shifting is the concept of altering the cells to change their form into something else with the help of chakra. So when I want my arm to change into metal, all the cells in my arm rearrange their atoms to become it. So the reason why I am able to stand even after you cut my legs is because I simply altered my cells to repair themselves so that I can walk again. So I am able to heal very fast and if you tried to cut off a limb, I can simply stitch it back on as if it were brand new again."

Eight had reach within elbow's length of Ketsu who was frozen in place. BAM! Ketsu was sent flying through five trees as Eight thrust his fist into Ketsu's chest.

"That's another unique thing about me: my skeleton is made completely of one of the strongest metals on earth. I can alter that too." Eight stated walking towards Ketsu once more.

Ketsu stood up and put his hands in the air signaling forfeit. "I give up." He said.

"What? I know you have more than that!" Eight said aggravated.

"But you are right about my healing technique, it is not that good. Plus, you can't make bargains with my brother if I'm dead now can you?" Ketsu said.

"Good point." With that Eight hit Ketsu over the head knocking him out. He crouched down next to the unconscious body and inserted a needle that he carried with him. "This will make you sleep for a while." Eight said to Ketsu.

---

"Eight hasn't come back yet…" Naruto said pacing constant circles around the small fire they made. Ryu and Kyozoku were sitting around the fire absorbing its warmth like bread with water.

"I wonder where he is…" Ryu said softly.

"Me too; after all it's already nightfall." Kyozoku said.

"I have to go out and find him. I knew I should have gone when he first left!" Naruto said angrily.

"Let us come with you Naruto, it's the least we can do. We were the ones that held you back in the first place." Kyozoku said standing up.

"No, I definitely do not want you to come. Because when I find him, I'm going to teach him a lesson from going off like that. He needs to learn patience and respect. Not everything is as easy as going out and getting it. He has to prioritize himself. You guys will only get in my way when I correct him for his mistakes. Please, if you guys want to help, then stay out of this." Naruto said firmly.

"Very well…" Ryu and Kyozoku both said as Naruto dashed off into the dark forest following Ketsu's path.

It wasn't long before Naruto found Ketsu and Eight sitting on a rock deep in the forest.

"You! You're from the Shouten aren't you?" Naruto said pointing at Eight.

"Well said. The name's Eight and I have your brother. I decided to offer you a bargain, take it and your brother survives, don't, and he doesn't." Eight said.

"What's this bargain? What could you possibly want from me?" Naruto asked.

"We want the demon that rests inside of you. It is essential to our plans." Eight began. "But to take it out you have to die. If you don't take the bargain, I will kill you and your brother, so either way it looks bad for you. But you aren't choosing for yourself, it's for Ketsu here." Eight patted Ketsu who was still completely knocked out on the head.

"Don't touch him." Naruto said with a very intensely threatening tone.

"What is it with the Uzumaki clan threatening people? What is your decision?" Eight asked.

"I prefer you kill us both." Naruto said disappearing and reappearing in the same spot he was before except this time with Ketsu in his arms. "Or I'd like you to try." Naruto said.

"What the- how did you do that so fast?" Eight asked.

"Doesn't matter after tonight, because you'll soon be dead." Naruto said placing his brother carefully on the ground.

"Don't underestimate me kid. Your brother did that and look how it worked out for him." Eight said.

"All I ask is that you do the same. Do not take me lightly, because I am much stronger than Ketsu." Naruto said.

"We'll see about that now won't we?" Eight said with a grin. "I'm excited now from your words, I'm only hoping that you can live up to them."

"Oh I can assure you that you won't be disappointed." Naruto said crouching ready to fight.

Naruto dashed over to Eight's side and attempted to strike him in the face with his fists. Eight was too fast for that so he blocked the punch but his arm snapped in two from the force.

Eight's arm went back to normal as he reattached the cells and he continued the battle by allowing his left arm to transform into a long platinum hammer. His right hand turned into a medium-sized circular shield that looked somewhat like an ancient gong.

"Now what I'm trying to figure out," Naruto began. "Is how strong you are."

"Well the Shouten had a total of six members before Saru came. One of our members died which was replaced by Saru keeping the number at six. Coincidentally, Saru replaced his older brother Sora. Even including Sora in our organization, I would be the third strongest. Our leader's power leaves us all behind so far that all five of us wouldn't be able to take him on. The second strongest one in the Shouten is much stronger than me. I am much stronger than Saru but he does have a long way to go. He is still young so he can be stronger if he decides to try." Eight said. "Of course, I don't think you will be able to defeat me at your level. I can honestly say that I was disappointed at how weak your brother is. I did not feel challenged in that previous fight whatsoever."

"Well he still needs a lot to learn as well." Naruto said. "So I see you can shape shift. That is quite an interesting ability."

"You are good at stating the obvious. But to tell you the truth, it is my only real ability since I was created by the Shouten member which you recently killed. Other than good reflex time and super strength, this is all I have. I am not like you or any other person that is born; I am simply a body without a soul." Eight explained.

"Don't try to hide your skill at chakra control. I know that in order to do something so unique you must be in complete power over your chakra. So if you combine all three of those skills you come up with one very weird combination." Naruto said smiling. "I'm going to enjoy this."

"In my case, controlling chakra can only take me so far. It's creativity in my shape shifting that allows me to become stronger." Eight said.

"The tactic that you are planning to use won't work on me." Naruto said referring to the hammer and gong. "I know that you plan to use the hammer for destruction. Not only that but by banging the hammer and gong together you will create a large sound with such a high frequency that it's supposed to stun me. I've seen many sound techniques before that nothing really surprises me anymore." Naruto said.

"You can't be sure this won't work." Eight said outstretching both of his weapons about to bang them together.

"You're welcome to waste your energy. However, another reason that your technique won't work is that you are already caught in the flow of my Genjutsu." Naruto said disappearing slowly.

After a few seconds, three copies of Eight himself appeared around the real Eight.

"Let's see how good you are against yourself." Naruto's voice said.

From that point, the battle that took place was all Taijutsu. Eight constantly moved back and forth, forwards and backwards, all to dodge to incoming attacks from his fake clones.

It wasn't long before Eight jumped high up in the air to avoid all three of his opponents. While in the air, both of his arms each turned into fifty metal strings extending far out and attaching themselves to trees from all around.

ZOOM! The strings all retracted and hundreds of pieces of trees came crashing down on the three Eights causing them to vanish into thin air just like Naruto had done.

"Genjutsu can be very dangerous if you don't know how to handle it." Eight said as he closed his eyes. Suddenly, he was back to reality.

There Naruto was, just a few feet in front of him, smiling. "So you CAN stop Genjutsu after all."

"Of course; all it is, is stopping the chakra flow that you control through the Genjutsu. With good control of chakra, which I believe we've already established I can do, then you can get out of it easily." Eight said.

"If that is so, then why didn't you get out of it immediately?" Naruto asked.

"I wanted to see what level your Genjutsu is at. It seems that it's not your best aspect." Eight said.

Before anything else occurred, Naruto formed hand seals shouting, "Katon: Ryuuka no Jutsu!"

Naruto put his hand to his mouth as a huge amount of extremely hot flames burst out directly at Eight engulfing him within the fire.

Eight was left with much of his muscles burned badly if not turned to ashes. At the same time, all his skin was completely gone. His skeleton was the only thing about him that remained unharmed.

Eight's skin simply reappeared while his muscles did the same time. Soon enough his body was as good as new.

"Well, then let's see how well you can do against this. Hari Bunshin no Jutsu." Naruto said forming a few hand seals.

Suddenly, ten Naruto clones appeared all of them behind Naruto.

"Hari Bunshin…" Eight repeated to himself scratching his small goatee at the same time. "That would mean glass clones correct?"

"Very smart." Naruto said as all of the Naruto clones rushed at their opponent.

The first one that Eight punched exploded on the spot causing glass to shoot everywhere from the force.

Eight jumped back but his body was completely cut all over with glass shards stuck inside it at different places. The glass that flew at Naruto simply went around him. The nine other Bunshins continued to run towards Eight as if nothing had happened.

The first Bunshin to reach him at that point attempted to punch Eight's face but missed as Eight ducked. But before Eight could back away without laying a single finger on the Bunshin, it exploded anyways causing more glass to fly into Eight's body.

The eight other Bunshins gathered close together and formed an octagon around Eight. BOOM!

All of them exploded leaving Eight on the floor with most of his skin off once more. He was bleeding terribly but he still stood up. This time he wasn't able to heal his whole body. He was only capable of partially healing his vitals which he did as fast as he could.

"I hope I did not disappoint you in this battle." Naruto said.

Eight stayed silent.

"I have been fighting for a long time so I have gotten quite skilled at analyzing people's fighting styles and abilities." Naruto began. "Your first mistake was telling me that your only abilities were super strength, and shape shifting with good chakra control. With that in mind, all I had to do was put you through two tests which allowed me to determine how strong you really are."

"What are you talking about?" Eight said panting for air as his body continued to bleed badly.

"The first test was the Genjutsu. I used a weak illusionary technique on you to see how good your chakra control really is. The second test was the fire technique. I had you mostly figured out after witnessing your body regenerating completely back to normal. That was another mistake you made by the way." Naruto said. "My guess is that you alter your cells to shape shift but you can also heal yourself by doing that. Or at least that's what it looks like on the outside. I don't think you can create cells out of thin air, as in your cells will not reproduce since you are not actually human. Your cells will live as long as forever until they are destroyed from an outside force, like getting burned. So what you did is take cells from different parts of your body as in your limbs in such so that you could heal the rest of your body. But I think the only reason why you healed yourself completely was to show off or to appear to as if you had the ability to completely heal yourself. All that was necessary was to heal your vital organs so you can function properly." Naruto said.

"Wow, I am actually very impressed at your analysis." Eight said.

"That's not all." Naruto said. "Since you have a limited amount of cells in your body, you cannot "heal" forever; which is why I used the exploding glass clones to destroy your body a second time. But since you already used many of your cells to completely heal yourself the first time, you don't have enough to do it again. Instead, you barely have enough to heal your vital organs to keep you alive until you reach the Shouten base. Am I correct?" Naruto asked.

Eight simply laughed which confirmed Naruto's theory. "I guess I was careless this time." He said.

"I suppose you could call it that. But the simple truth is that you got cocky and in the end, you underestimated me like I warned you not to. Go back to your base and regenerate so that the next time I see you, you will have learned a lesson." Naruto said. "But don't ever make the mistake of even THINKING about touching my brother again, or I will make sure to finish the job." Naruto finished.

"Your words are crystal clear…Uzumaki Naruto. You have earned my respect. It's sad that so much talent will be wasted when we extract the Kyubbi from your body." Eight said dashing off into the dark forest.

Naruto took Ketsu and quickly returned back to the camp fire he was a few hours ago.

When he arrived, he filled Ryu and Kyozoku in on what happened.

"Another Shouten member huh?" Ryu asked.

A few hours later and Ketsu awoke in fury.

"Why am I not in the Shouten base?" Ketsu asked.

"Naruto chased after you and rescued you back from Eight." Kyozoku said.

"What?!" Ketsu said in disbelief. "Do you not realize that the reason why I lost the battle so easily is because I wanted to end up in the base?"

"Do you not realize that if you were in the base you would be dead before you even woke up? They have no use for you Ketsu, think with your head before making stupid decisions like that." Naruto said harshly.

"Who the hell do you think you are?" Ketsu asked evilly to Naruto. "You're not my brother, what happened to the supporting best friend who would always be by my side?"

"I AM AT YOUR SIDE!!!" Naruto shouted. "But you have to use your head instead of your heart before making decisions! Don't be so hardheaded because I always have to look out for you and save you! You should be thanking me you ungrateful twit!" Naruto shouted back.

"I'm tired of your crap! All of you, I'm not going to take this from any of you any longer!" Ketsu shouted standing up preparing to fight.

Naruto stood up right after clenching his fists.

"No Naruto." Ryu said. "Let us handle this; you've had one too many battles at this point. Let us calm him down. We've done it before."

Ryu and Kyozoku both stood up and prepared to fight the friend who had turned against them.

A/N: Guys please r&r. I'm not sure how long the next chapter will take but it wont' be out too soon…sorry. But please I really need to know that I haven't lost my readers so please review and tell me what you think of the story.


	25. Kyubbi

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Chapter Twenty-Five: Kyubbi

"Ketsu, how many times have we been through this? We all know that you can't take Kyozoku and me on at the same time!" Ryu stated attempting to smack Ketsu on top of his head with his staff.

"It's been a while since we've fought against each other. I've improved since then!" Ketsu said catching the staff. As soon Ketsu's hand made contact with the stick, a electric current surged through directly to Ryu's body causing Ryu to immediately let go of his weapon.

Ketsu then quickly turned around using the staff the block a kick by Kyozoku.

"Kyozoku," Ryu began, "let's take him down. You know what to do."

Kyozoku jumped back forming hand seals and taking a deep breath. "Tategami Unari, LION'S ROAR!!!" She shouted followed by a powerful scream. However Kyozoku only screamed for half a second before she stopped and fell to the ground unconscious.

"Kyozoku!" Ryu shouted as he ran over by her side. "What did you do?" He asked Ketsu.

"She's used that move on me before. I made sure to be ready for it if it ever happened again. In the beginning of this battle, I used a Jutsu that increased her hearing by tenfold. I activated it just before she used that move. So what you hear, she was hearing her own move ten times louder. It knocked her out completely." Ketsu said. "I plan ahead. You won't beat me this time. You need Kyozoku as a teammate because one-on-one, we both know that I win."

Ryu stood up silently without saying a single word for a few moments. Then he asked, "Ketsu, what is it that you want?"

"I want my revenge." Ketsu said. "I can't think of anything else. I had a chance to get it; it doesn't matter if I die afterwards, all that matters is that I avenge him. I was closer than ever before and you all ruined it. I'm not going to take this lightly. I want you all to know that you should never get in my way."

"I can't believe the words that I'm hearing. Your selfishness is overwhelming. I guess it's time that I teach you another lesson." Ryu said. "Alright, if that's what you want. I'll fight you by myself. But I'm going to take you down no matter what. Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" Ryu opened up his right hand as a large black boomerang appeared. The boomerang was so large that Ryu's right hand was holding the tip of it, the black weaponry extended from his hand raised above his head all the way down to the ground.

"So you will be using that then?" Ketsu asked.

The large boomerang that stood about as long as six foot tall had a large ruby on each side in the middle. Ryu took one of the ruby's and placed it in his jacket pocket. He then with a little bit of difficulty lifted the boomerang off of the ground and held it horizontally. He let go as the boomerang stayed floating in the air in front of him.

"As you know Ketsu, there are two rubies. The one I have allows me to control this large boomerang and have it go anywhere I desire it to. Good luck fighting my darkest weapon." Ryu said as he put his hands together. With a face of concentration, the boomerang began to move towards Ketsu spinning slowly. The weapon left behind a trail of dark wind that appeared like sharp smoke.

As the boomerang traveled closer to Ketsu, it began to pick up speed leaving the dark trail bigger until finally the boomerang was spinning high in the air at a very fast speed. Soon enough, a black tornado was created that formed itself around the boomerang. No tree or boulder could stand in the tornado's way; it would simply devour everything in its path like a black hole.

"You better move Ketsu!" Ryu shouted trying to get his opponent to hear him over the roaring sound of the wind. "You know that this move is a tornado that disassembles particles and simply absorbs the energy from those particles to use as fuel to keep on going."

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" Ketsu shouted as five different clones appeared. They all opened up their right hand and shouted, "Ranpu…rasengan!"

Instead of the regular blue chakra color, it was bright yellow illuminating about as much as the sun. It was so bright, all eyes turned away from the five spheres. After a few seconds all five Ketsu's clashed each sphere together to create a large bright rasengan in the real Ketsu's hand.

By this time, the tornado had arrived devouring two bunshins in less than a second. It seemed as if they turned into powder that got sucked up with the wind. Ketsu only waited until the tornado was within arms reach about to engulf him. He drove the rasengan straight into the tornado and the darkness simply disappeared leaving the boomerang itself to fall to the ground shattered in pieces.

"Ranpu rasengan…so you finally learned it." Ryu said smiling slightly in a proud way.

"It took me a while but yes I did." Ketsu said as the sphere disappeared from his hand. "Let's continue shall we?"

"There's no need." Kyozoku's voice said from a nearby location. Suddenly, fifteen sharp spears all shot up towards each other from the ground and stopped at a common point above Ketsu.

He was now in a jail that was shaped exactly like a teepee, trapped.

Kyozoku stood up from the ground saying, "Ketsu, you should know that I recover fast."

"Must have slipped my mind." Ketsu said.

"There is no reason why we should be fighting!" Kyozoku began. "We're teammates. If anger can separate us, then I don't want a part of the Tennoushihai." She said harshly. "We are supposed to stick together no matter what through thick and thin. What are we doing right now? We are fighting each other because one has anger problems and supposedly we want to calm him down. No, that's not how it goes guys. Decide right now, Tennoushihai, or your battle. Are you going to put anger before your friendship, or are you going to let it slide? Don't worry Ketsu, we will help you get your revenge; we don't want you to do it alone. We are all here with you."

Both Ryu and Ketsu bowed their heads in shame for fighting with each other for such a trivial thing. They apologized to each other as Kyozoku's spears disappeared.

---

Kiran sighed in disappointment. "So Kagai was murdered then?"

"Yes my lord. Lucky for Saru that I was around because if not, that boy would have caught up to him and he would be gone as well." Eight said.

"Kyu will not be happy to learn this. After he finds out that I have failed in judgment, then I will definitely be punished. Apparently, the Kyubbi boy is much more than he seems…" Kiran stated.

"Where is…Kyu?" Saru asked barely managing to muster up enough courage to speak to Kiran.

"He is currently in a state of meditation that allows him to-" Eight began.

"He's sleeping." Kiran interrupted obviously hiding the truth. "He'll be out soon. So it appears that we are down to only four Shouten members."

---

"What was his name you said?" Naruto asked his younger brother.

"I am not sure. ANBU names are not revealed because if enemies ever found out about them, then they could be easily defeated. It's easier to win by attacking the ones nearer to your enemy." Ketsu said. "All I know from what Jiraiya once told me is that he has the ability of the first Hokage."

"And what ability is that?" Kyozoku asked.

"It is the ability to have somewhat control over Jinchuuriki powers." Ketsu said.

"So what you're saying is that, I Should go train with him?" Naruto asked. "How is this going to help me?"

"What I think he's trying to say is," Ryu began. "Since we were just talking about you getting stronger, if you go to this guy, then he can probably help you get control over your demon powers."

"Yeah." Ketsu said.

"I agree with Ketsu. After all, you did say that we should go after the Shouten didn't you Naruto?" Kyozoku said.

"Yes I did. I said we would help Ketsu get his revenge, and we need to be stronger for that. But no man in his right mind would help and outsider who is a former Akatsuki member-"

"Exactly!" Ketsu said. "Keyword: Former. Plus, all the three of us are allies of Konoha village. We will vouch for you and even if they know you are an Akatsuki member you can say that you got out. If we explain our situation, I'm positive that he will help us." Ketsu said.

Naruto sighed. "Very well, let's head to Konoha."

---

All Akatsuki members gathered inside the base to form a circle. Together they were ten in total.

"So it appears that we are all back to a reasonable number. I trust everyone's judgment here so why doesn't everyone introduce who they brought into this organization?" Itachi began. "Let's start with Mihniopaksu and Deidara."

Mihniopaksu stepped forward and pointed to who they recruited, "This is Tobi. In all honesty, Deidara and I do not know a thing about him except for his name. However, I know Zetsu talked of him many times before so I trust his judgment. Tobi, why don't you say something about yourself?"

Tobi then stepped forward as his introducer stepped back into the circle and said, "Well I have trained my whole life to become as I am now. I did not become serious about fighting until I had a childhood encounter with my trusty enemy death who I have managed to avoid so far. I really do not like to reveal anything to anybody unless they happen to see it if I fight. That's about it."

"Very well put Tobi." Deidara commented.

"I guess we'll go next." Kakuzu said as him and Ryoku stepped forward. "This here is Ryoku. He is an old friend/rival who has fortunately joined with us. He is very talented in all types of fighting and he controls the power of diamond with his left hand and ice with his right. He is able to use them extremely well and I doubt anybody here can beat him without any help."

Kisame then murmured something quietly to Itachi. "Hmm…" Itachi said as Hidan stepped up.

"The point is, he swore his allegiance to the Akatsuki and I know that he is a man of his word. Don't doubt him by his strength, embrace the fact that he is a great help to our cause." Hidan stated.

"Very well." Kisame said. "Everyone, Itachi and I have brought you a man who you well may know. He is thought to be dead by most and we know will be a great help to us. He is an outlaw of the Konoha village and the father to the thousand copy ninja Hatake Kakashi. I introduce you to Hatake Sakumo, the White Fang."

"Interesting…" Mihniopaksu said scratching his chin.

"For everybody who is new, welcome." Itachi said. "Now Hinata, I apologize that you could not go, however I will open this opportunity to ask you, is there anything else you would like to add?"

Hinata stepped up slowly, "I've been asking myself for a long time now, and I still can't understand. What are we fighting for?"

"I thought that was obvious, we are fighting for world domination!" Hidan said.

"But what if some of us don't want that?" Hinata asked a little louder.

"Well then what are you doing here?" Hidan asked.

"I didn't choose to be here! You all sealed me up in a coffin and kept me as a weapon. Where's my choice huh?" Hinata asked even louder with a frown on her face.

"I will teach you to be so insolent!" Kakuzu said taking five steps towards Hinata.

"Guys." Itachi started.

"You don't want to mess with me…" Hinata said with a very threatening tone.

"Guys." Itachi said once more.

"That's it, you're dead!" Kakuzu shouted picking up his pace.

"Guys!" Itachi shouted.

Hinata said nothing but simply disappeared and reappeared behind Kakuzu with her sword out.

"GUYS STOP!" Itachi screamed.

VOOM! All of a sudden, Kakuzu found his lower body frozen with ice unable to move. Hinata was also immobilized as well, but with diamond. Ryoku had stepped forth and had both of his arms stretched out to both of them.

Everything was silent for a moment. Hinata was panting and Kakuzu was completely still. Suddenly, Kakuzu's right arm simply detached itself from his body.

"You little whore!" Kakuzu shouted. "You cut off my arm!"

"Kakuzu, it's not like it makes a difference!" Hidan shouted.

Kakuzu's tendrils that filled his body simply reattached his arm to himself. "That is beside the point!"

"Wow, if I may say so, that was very good." Tobi said.

"Who might you be?" Sakumo asked to Hinata.

"My name is Hyugga Hinata, and I am here because I never had a choice to be anything else. I was raised here, and this is all that I have. But my perception of the Akatsuki has been changed drastically. I used to believe that we were a family, even though there was tension between some at many times. But it appears that the ultimate "goal" has to be reached no matter what. That attaining word domination is more important than any single person here. If one dies, doesn't matter because we have to go on. One by one, what I called family members died, but it was as if nobody cared except me. I didn't cry in front of anyone because I didn't want anybody to see me as weak. But now that I see that we are recruiting more members, I tell you that I cannot see us as a family. How can I love people that I do not know? Does anybody even care for anybody at all? Am I simply a weapon to everybody here like Naruto was?" Hinata asked with tears slowly dripping down her cheeks.

"Kakuzu, calm down first of all." Itachi said.

"Hinata," Mihniopaksu began to explain, "You are not just a tool to us. You have become a part of each of us. However some are less tolerant than others. Do not forget that you own a special place within all of us. As for the new members: we cannot complete our goal if we are a broken organization. I have no other way to explain them to you except that, all those who have died, they have died fighting for the cause that we are fighting for now. If we give up on this goal, then they die in vain, and we can't let that happen. That's why we need more people to fulfill the dreams of those who are dreaming now. When all this is over, you can have your pick of what you want to do. As for now, we need you, but remember that we still care about you no matter what." Mihniopaksu said.

"I am sorry for doubting." Hinata bowed in apology as both she and Kakuzu were released from their binding states.

"I am sorry for losing my temper Hinata." Kakuzu said.

"So now that we are replenished, what are the plans Itachi?" Deidara asked.

Itachi's eyes glowed as he said, "Well, for now, we have to focus on attaining the nine tails demon fox. We need to locate Uzumaki Naruto."

---

"So I'll wait outside here to not cause commotion." Naruto said as all four of them stood outside of Konoha gates.

"Exactly, give us a few minutes and we'll be right out." Ketsu said as him, Ryu, and Kyozoku rushed into the village.

"Ketsu!" A voice immediately said when they entered.

Ketsu turned his head and smiled. "Sakura-Chan, how are you?"

"Wow, this is a really big surprise. Where have you been all these years?" Sakura asked.

"Training; I've been through a lot while I've been gone. How long has it been?" Ketsu asked.

"Too long!" A voice shouted from above.

"Ten-ten!" Ketsu said.

Ten-ten jumped down from the roof and asked, "What brings you here to Konoha?"

"Actually I'm looking for the Hokage, I don't know who that is though." Ketsu said.

"Oh, about that…" Sakura said.

"We haven't had a Hokage ever since Haburi died. Nobody in this village can fit the position well enough. Kakashi has been asked many times but he declines every single time." Ten-ten explained.

"Well then, where is Kakashi?" Ketsu asked.

"He's in the ramen shop eating with Yamato and Kimotsu." Sakura said accidentally revealing two ANBU names. She immediately covered her mouth after realizing her mistake. "you didn't here that!"

"Maybe they are one of the ones we need." Ryu said as all three of them rushed to the ramen shop.

There they were, three men, Kakashi, another with light brown spiky hair, and the third with spiky hair as well but black.

"Kakashi, it's me Ketsu." Ketsu said from outside the small shop.

Kakashi stood up along with the three guys and stepped outside to greet the voice that called his name.

"Ketsu! Wow, as it been a while huh?" he said shaking his hand. "Boy you've gotten a lot taller! I recognize you two from somewhere…" Kakashi said turning to face Kyozoku and Ryu.

"We were both here about a year ago right before Haburi died." Ryu said without any expression on his face.

"So who is Yamato and who is Kimotsu?" Kyozoku asked smiling.

Both Yamato and Kimotsu both jumped up in shock and surprise.

"Um…I guess that means Sakura's tongue must have slipped. Well since you already know I guess there's no harm in already telling you. The one with brown hair is Kimotsu and Yamato is the one with black hair." Kakashi said scratching the back of his head and smiling.

"Listen Kakashi," Ketsu said leaning in closer. "I need to request a very large favor from someone. Apparently there is an ANBU member who has the genes of the first Hokage."

"That would be me." Yamato stepped forward. "If you're going to ask a favor of me, then why don't you stop talking to Kakashi?" He said forcefully.

"Hey calm down a little Yamato." Kimotsu said.

"Well if it is you then, I don't know how to say this but…something big is coming and it's coming fast. Have you ever heard of the Shouten?" Ketsu asked.

"Doesn't seem to ring a bell." Yamato said.

"Well they are a small organization who have a better chance of succeeding than the Akatsuki do. The Shouten is composed of S rank criminals stronger than all of the Akatsuki. We know from experience." Ketsu said.

"What do you want from me?" Yamato asked.

"I need you to help us. Or more like help one of us." Ketsu said.

"Help?"

"Yes, train one of us." Ketsu said.

"Which one of you needs training?" Yamato inquired.

Ketsu was silent for a moment then scratched his arm and said, "Well…you see…about that…my brother is going to need your help…"

"Your brother?" Kimotsu asked.

"I'm pretty sure you've heard of him…are you ready…his name is….Uzumaki…Naruto." Ketsu said softly.

"What?" Yamato asked in disbelief. "You want me to train an Akatsuki member who is probably already twice as strong as I am?"

"Well, he has the nine tails Jinchuuriki inside of him and if you know how to control that then maybe you can help him be in control." Ketsu said.

"I would never sink so low in my life! To help a criminal that lives for power and death is worse than death itself!" Yamato shouted.

Ketsu gritted his teeth and clenched his fists as he heard those harsh words.

"I was not born with this ability, it was given to me through an experiment, but even though what I have is an accident, I will use it for the greater good. I will not aid the Akatsuki in anything I do. I would rather die! To help Uzumaki Naruto is to help the enemy; it is to ensure the end of Konoha. I refuse!" Yamato continued to shout getting Ketsu even angrier.

Finally, Ketsu snapped. He took two steps and grabbed Yamato by the collar and yelled right in his face, "Okay, first off, Naruto is not an Akatsuki member anymore! He ran away a year ago and has been with us ever since. He is a great person and he has turned his life around. I will not stand here as you insult my only blood relative based on the lies and rumors that you have heard. Naruto is not a bad person! Apparently you do not understand enough, we would not have come if we didn't NEED your help. But the fact is that your pride is the last thing you should be worried about because soon enough, the Shouten will have everything they need before they takeover not only Konoha village but even the Akatsuki itself! You must realize that we ourselves all put our pride aside to enter through these gates and ask you for help. Because we have fortunately realized the importance of this matter and now we are here, ready to fight for the world's future. YOU SHOULD DO THE SAME!!!" With that, Ketsu let go of Yamato and backed away.

Yamato was silent for a moment, and then said, "How bad is it?"

"We recently had an encounter with a Shouten member. They need Naruto's demon powers for some reason, and we know that we can't stand against them at the strength we are now. We need to get stronger. Mainly Naruto because he needs to fight them off. Please listen, we are not asking you to come and risk your life for us, we are asking that you allow us to risk ours." Ketsu said.

"…Where is he?" Yamato asked.

"He's waiting outside of the village. We need you to train him now." Ryu said.

"Meet me at the end of the forest in five minutes. I will be there soon." Yamato said as they all parted.

"Kakashi and I will both go with you incase anything occurs." Kimotsu said running along side Yamato.

---

"Haku and Kagai are dead? How could you send him out on a mission like that? Did you not know that Kagai is not exactly that strong?" Kyu asked after hearing the news.

"Yes my lord but under the circumstances-" Kiran tried to explain

"WHAT CIRCUMSTANCES?!"

"Stop!" Saru shouted. "It's my fault! It's my fault okay? Look, I ran when I should have fought along side of Kagai. I left him to fight Naruto and Ketsu at the same time! It is not Kiran's fault that he sent Kagai and I because Kagai gave his life for the Shouten but I was too afraid to do the same. I was afraid that we were going to lose so I-"

Saru was knocked to the wall by Kyu who backhanded him. "Silence! You are disobedient just like your brother! Do not speak if you have not been asked to speak! WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE? YOU ARE NOTHING YOU HEAR ME? NOTHING!!!" Kyu screamed.

Saru cried horribly in fear. He curled up in the corner and simply allowed the tears to fall from his face. He regretted not listening to Haku, he didn't want anything anymore except to be back in Konoha safe with Haburi. But he killed Haburi, Konoha would never forgive him. Haku is dead and now he had no choice but to pledge his life for a lost cause. Sora was never coming back. Saru cried louder at these thoughts.

"SHUT UP! SHUT THE HELL UP YOU LITTLE INSECT!" Kyu screamed even louder. Saru shut up immediately but tears still rushed to the ground.

"I don't want to be here anymore!" Saru shouted curling himself up even more.

"What did you say?" Kyu asked threateningly.

"I said I don't want to be here anymore!" Saru shouted once more. "I hate this place!"

Kyu simply laughed for a few moments. "It doesn't matter what you want. Your life belongs to me; your SOUL belongs to me. There is no way in hell that I'm going to give that up. You can forget about leaving. You will stay with me until you die! Cry all you want now, but you can never leave! I OWN YOU!!!"

---

Soon enough, Yamato, Kakashi, and Kimotsu met up with the four teenagers at the end of the forest as planned.

Yamato carried five black shackles in his hands. He walked directly up to Naruto and handed them to him. "Here, put these on."

"What are they?" Naruto asked.

"They are called Chakra binders. One of them is strong enough to prevent a regular shinobi from using them. I'm giving you five. Put them on your arms, legs, and neck." Yamato explained.

"How is this going to help me?" Naruto asked.

"Look, I came here to help you. Don't question my training methods okay kid?" Yamato said. "We need to work on bringing out your demon chakra first. So as soon as you put those one we can begin."

Naruto wore them where he was told to and said, "Let's start."

"Great. Now let's see if those chakra binders are strong enough to prevent you from using any Ninjutsu. Test it out." Yamato said.

Naruto felt powerless. He could not expel a single drop of chakra. "I can't do anything." He sighed.

"I'm glad that it works. So five is enough. Alright, your opponent in this training session will be Kimotsu. I want you to take him down by using your demon chakra." Yamato said.

"Are you sure that's safe?" Naruto asked.

"The whole point of this exercise is to be able to release your Kyubbi chakra in the first place. So just do what I say." Yamato explained.

"Alright. Here goes nothing." Naruto said concentrating very hard to bring out the demon within him.

Kimotsu stepped up saying, "Don't think I'm going to give you an easy time here."

"I'm not expecting anything." Naruto said in full concentration.

Kimotsu rushed at Naruto with a fist flying towards his opponent. Naruto moved his head to the side and dodge the punch with great speed. Kimotsu pulled back his fist and backed away.

Naruto stood up tall and noticed that there was blood running down his cheek. He looked back at his opponent and saw that Kimotsu had a kunai in his hand.

"So when you pulled back your punch you whipped out a kunai huh?" Naruto asked.

"You are good at stating the obvious." Kimotsu said rushing at him again.

Kimotsu jumped up into the air swinging his right leg at Naruto's head. Naruto blocked with his left forearm and quickly threw a punch to Kimotsu's chest.

BAM! Kimotsu immediately caught the punch and a shock surged through Naruto's entire right arm causing it to go numb. Naruto was caught off guard with this technique and Kimotsu didn't waste any time. He simply held onto Naruto's fist and with his right hand stuck Naruto's face with enough power that it sent him back a few feet to the floor.

Naruto stood up with his right arm hanging in complete numbness. "I've got to do this." He thought to himself.

"Kimotsu, it's not working," Yamato said, "You are going to have to speed the process up if we want to make any progress at all. Result to a death strategy. That is the only way he'll access the chakra within him. The Kyubbi won't let Naruto die."

"Well, I guess on Yamato's orders, I'm going to have to kill you." Kimotsu said smiling.

Kimotsu wore a bracelet on his right wrist that had a tiny spike sticking out at his palm area. He swung his arm straight at Naruto and the spike simply launched out connected to a string tied to the wrist band and encircled Naruto many times.

Naruto was bound from neck to toe in a metal thin string. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" Kimotsu shouted as four other Bunshins appeared doing the exact same thing Kimotsu just did.

Naruto was now tied up in strings connected to five different Kimotsu's.

"I'm sorry Naruto, but this is really going to hurt. The faster you get your demon powers out, the less longer you're going to have to endure this. SHOUGEKI NO JUTSU!" All Kimotsu's shouted as a great electrical surge traveled to Naruto through the metal strings.

Naruto screamed in pain as he felt his whole body being shocked. He could hear the voices of his brother Ketsu shouting his name. Suddenly, everything went black, and everything went silent.

---

Naruto had a huge headache and he could see nor hear anything.

As soon as he came to focus, he could hear the dripping of water as if he were in some kind of drainage area. He opened his eyes slowly to find himself in a yellow dimmed place.

"Where am I?" Naruto asked out loud. All that answered him was his echo bouncing down the hallways past him. He stood up and looked around, there was only one way to go, forward.

Naruto kept running for a few minutes until he entered a very large room that had a cage in it. The cage was twenty times bigger than Naruto and then he realized where he was. He looked straight past the steel bars and into the eyes of the beast that had ruined his very existence. He stared straight at the glowing red eyes coming from the demon fox within the cage; he was facing his worst nightmare, the demon inside him who had destroyed his childhood, the Kyubbi.

Naruto's knees trembled at the very sight. The Kyubbi simply smiled at having sensed his tangible fear.

"Do you realize that you are nothing without me?" The fox asked him.

Naruto stood still, he stood silent, and let his inner demon speak once more. "You need my help to survive, you need my help right now. Release me from this cage, and I will grant you the power that you need to get what you want."

"NARUTO!" Yamato's voice echoed through the room and into Naruto's head.

"DO NOT ALLOW THE KYUBBI TO CONTROL YOU. REMEMBER, YOU ARE THE ONE IN CONTROL! HE IS TRAPPED IN YOU, RELEASE HIM, AND GAIN CONTROL. IF NOT THEN YOU WILL BE LOST FOREVER." Yamato said.

"RELEASE ME FROM THIS PRISON BOY! YOU NEED ME!!!" Kyubbi shouted bashing his paw against the cage. The ground shook from the force as the long sharp nails slipped through the cracks of the bars almost touching Naruto.

"No." Naruto said.

"WHAT?" The Kyubbi asked in frustration.

"You don't command me. I am your master." Naruto said standing tall as his legs ceased to shake.

"RELEASE ME!!! THAT IS THE ONLY WAY TO GET MY POWERS!!!" The Kyubbi screamed.

"I said no!" Naruto shouted. He raised his right hand towards the demon fox with his fingers spread wide. "Give…me…your…power!"

VOOM! Red chakra from inside the cage rushed to Naruto's body and overwhelmed him.

---

Naruto opened his eyes and suddenly felt his blood rush, his strength increase, and his desire to conquer fill him to the very depths of his soul. The metal strings were nothing against his new strength. He could not feel a single volt coming to his body. He ripped the strings by extending his arms in rage.

"Control it Naruto!" Yamato shouted.

Naruto's rage had gotten the best of him, he saw Kimotsu, and he charged. Suddenly, his energy was gone, and he fell to the floor exhausted, the power drained from him completely.

He looked up as Yamato walked towards him. "You did a good job, now we just need to rehearse that for a few more hours and you'll get the hang of it."

SIX HOURS LATER…

Naruto had improved by a mile, unwilling to quit despite his exhaustion. He was now able to access his Kyubbi powers at will with ease.

"Now remember, accessing your Kyubbi powers puts a lot of strain on your body so do not use it often." Yamato said.

"Thank you very much Yamato-san. If we can just be going now…" Naruto said.

"What?" Yamato asked. "That's not all. You have just finished with the easy part. If you can get the next part down by nightfall three days from now, I'll be impressed. When I'm done with you, you'll be able to do what no Jinchuuriki has ever done before with his demon powers."

"And what is that?" Naruto asked.

"Take off the chakra binders, and let's begin the second part." Yamato said.

Naruto did as he was told and got ready for his next session of training.

"Now, I want you to access your demon powers, then your regular chakra powers, and allow them both to be released at the same time." Yamato said.

"What? That's impossible!" Naruto shouted.

"Just release your demon chakra."

Naruto did as he was told as an aura of red glowing chakra surrounded his body.

"Now release your regular chakra at the same time." Yamato said.

Naruto squinted his eyes in focus, but his red chakra disappeared as soon as his blue chakra appeared.

"Try it again." Yamato said.

Finally, nightfall had come and Naruto was able to release both of them at the same time.

"Wow, you are doing very good." Yamato said complimenting him. "Now for the final addition, I want you, to mix both chakras together."

"How?" Naruto asked.

"Let me explain it to you so that you can see it is remotely possible. You have chakra veins located all over your body in which normal chakra flows. Your Demon inside of you releases the red chakra through an unused chakra passage that also flows through your body. Both veins of the demon chakra and regular chakra run parallel to each other so that they never intersect. That is the reason that you are able to bring them both out at the same time. The only way to mix them, is if they encounter each other at every location. You are going to need to release incredible amounts of each chakra in order for the chakra to overflow into each tubule allowing interaction between the two. That in turn will grant you an unlimited amount of chakra for a certain amount of time. With so much chakra, a Ninjutsu of any kind of power is possible. The task itself is so difficult that it has never been done in the history of man. Hopefully you will be able to do it within the next two days." Yamato said smiling. "However, keep in mind, that doing this will destroy your body by the second rather than heal it. After thirty seconds, your heart will over exert itself and stop beating, and your flesh will have deteriorated down to the very bone. Just a few seconds into this power could leave you with a coma for weeks. But the power granted to you is unimaginable."

"Good, then let's do it." Naruto said.

Authors Note: Ok guys I cannot tell you when the next chapter will be out but I will work on it as soon as possible.


	26. Rain Before the Hurricane Part One

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Chapter Twenty-Six: The Rain before the Hurricane Part One

Saru couldn't deal with this anymore. It was do or die, either way he had to try to leave. He dashed past Kyu as quickly as he could. He ran out of the Shouten base and through the forest not even stopping to catch a single breath.

"Would you like me to fetch him my lord?" Kiran asked.

"Actually, I am going to go myself. Apparently, he's brave enough to try to run from us. He is still of use to me, so I will not dispose of him yet. I have to gain his trust. I will catch up with him in a few hours; there is no need to run now. Let him tire out." Kyu said sitting down and closing his eyes.

---

"It is time to assign pairs to everyone. Sakumo and Tobi, you all will be pairing together. Ryoku, you will join teams with Kakuzu and Hidan. Everybody else will remain the same." Itachi said.

"Can I request to be a pair with the girl?" Ryoku asked.

"Itachi does everything for a reason. Do not doubt his leadership, because it is under that same leadership that will get us to our goal." Kisame interrupted.

"You should control your tongue; I expect an answer from the one I ask." Ryoku said.

"Stop everyone." Itachi said. "Kisame is right; don't argue with my ability to command. I do everything for a reason."

"Master Itachi, I am terribly sorry to interrupt. However, I thought you should know that I had a Bunshin follow Sasori closely and witness his death. Not only that, but my Bunshin also followed our current target all the way back to the Konoha forest. I just thought you should know their whereabouts." Mihniopaksu said.

"Very well Mihniopaksu, I truly appreciate you help. Since they are currently are in the forest, the Kyubbi is only an arms reach away. Sakumo, Tobi, Kisame, and I will head for Konoha. Hidan, and Kakuzu, I want you to capture the only remaining Bijou we need besides the Nine Tailed Fox: The Kazekage of the sand village has Shukaku within him. Bring him back." Itachi commanded.

"Hey, hey!" Deidara began. "What about the rest of us huh? What are Ryoku, Mihniopaksu, Hinata and I going to do?"

"Why don't you go and have fun blowing things up?" Kakuzu asked as him and his teammates left the Akatsuki base.

Hinata sat down on the ground and sighed. She had to escape.

---

Naruto was on the floor completely unconscious from all the practice. Yamato, Kakashi, and Kimotsu were all sitting down taking a break. Ryu, Ketsu, and Kyozoku were off in another area of the forest training hard.

"It really amazes me. He accomplished it. He mixed the chakra. However the effect was more intense than I thought. He held his powerful state for four seconds and half of his skin had deteriorated already. Whoever he's planning to fight in that state, is going to have to be defeated within a max time of thirty seconds. If Naruto cannot kill his opponent within that time, he'll die." Yamato said.

"I felt the power too, I'm pretty sure we all did. I felt like I was being burned alive to tell you the truth. I wonder how he feels." Kimotsu said.

"One thing is for sure, that boy…is more powerful than his father." Kakashi said softly.

"What are you talking about?" Kimotsu asked. "How do you know anything about him?"

"Forget I said anything." Kakashi said lying down on the soft green grass as he closed his eyes. "I don't know what I'm talking about anyway."

"Hey look, sleepy head is waking up." Kimotsu said pointing at Naruto who had opened his eyes slowly.

"What happened?" Naruto asked with a tired voice. "Wait a minute, I did it didn't I?"

Yamato nodded with a smile. "Yeah kid. You did do it, which surprises me a lot."

"Hey, I don't have the time to learn, the world will end soon if I'm not there to stop it. I fear that the only other person that is strong enough to make a big difference will refuse to help, if that happens, we're all doomed. It's not the quantity that matters; it's the strength of the individuals that fight. Even most ANBU would simply just be a burden in this fight because they are not capable." Naruto said looking directly up into the sky. "We have to get started once more."

---

"Hey, why is this happening?" Deidara asked. "Why are we stuck here?"

Hinata could not help it. She took out her sword and shouted, "BUSHI NO JUTSU!!!!"

VOOM!!! An orange glow emitted from her sword attacking Deidara, Mihniopaksu, and Ryoku.

BOOM!!! Half the wall of the base was knocked down into rubble. Dirt was all in the air from the crash so nothing was visible. When everything was clear, Hinata was gone and Deidara was on the floor.

Mihniopaksu had his hands forward holding a clear shiny barrier that looked like a bubble. It was completely cracked everywhere about to break. Ryoku was standing tall and unharmed with ice and diamond shards all around him on the floor.

"Deidara are you alright?" Mihniopaksu asked releasing the barrier.

Deidara stood up brushing the dirt off his cloak, "I'm fine. I jumped back as I put one of my toys in my place. That's probably what made the explosion a little more effective. It looks like both of you are perfectly fine as well. I thought we had reassured her…"

"Apparently not." Ryoku said smiling.

"That doesn't matter. We cannot allow her to escape. We must pursue her and bring her back!" Mihniopaksu said as all three Akatsuki members dashed off to catch Hinata.

---

"Sakumo, this is your chance to see your son. I brought you both with us so I can see what you are capable of. Please don't disappoint us." Itachi said.

Sakumo stayed silent as Tobi said, "You won't have to worry about that! I'll try my best. Who are we capturing again?"

"A boy named Uzumaki Naruto." Kisame answered. "To give you a little information on him, we captured him when he was a baby. We saved him from a circus house in Konoha. Apparently some shinobi were hosting an illegal "freak show" during the night hours. Some ANBU members were also in on it which is why it remained a secret from the Hokage. They got a hold of Naruto who had the nine tailed jinchuuriki inside of him. They tortured him ever since he was a baby. He knew of no happiness. We actually did Konoha a favor of taking care of the criminals, and taking him under our wing. He grew up with us and we each individually trained him. Now, he has surpassed each and every one of us. Trust me; it is going to take at least two using a hundred percent of their strength to take him down. He is also probably not alone; he is most likely accompanied by his brother Uzumaki Ketsu who is quite skilled as well." Kisame explained.

"Well then where did that girl Hinata come from?" Sakumo asked.

"She was also rescued from the same place Naruto was. Her background is even more unique." Kisame began. "There was once a jinchuuriki sealed inside of her, but when we extracted it, she did not die. Instead, she remained with the power and potential as she had before. We decided to raise her as well. With every fight, she becomes stronger and stronger. Her power has no limit and it cannot be measured for the fact that she is constantly becoming more powerful with every technique she uses. Every fight boosts her skill by a large amount."

"If you raised both of them, then why is Hinata so insolent, and why is Naruto somewhere else?" Tobi asked.

"Because they both have realized, that they were deprived of a life that they want to live. Naruto realized that much earlier and we have been his enemies ever since. Hinata is barely starting to notice this fact. But we cannot let her escape as well, because she is a great help to our cause." Itachi said.

"The point is, for Naruto, we all realized that one day, it would come to where we would have to extract his demon. But some of us refused, Itachi and me included. It was that day that the Akatsuki split into two groups. We were turned against each other for a boy who turned against us anyway. But we had to join back together when we encountered the Shouten. Luckily most of us made it out alive of that battle. The Akatsuki has been together ever since." Kisame said.

"Most?" Tobi asked.

"Yes, our leader Akuma fought his older brother from the Shouten single-handedly and lost. One of our other members Zetsu died as well. Itachi has taken Akuma's place as our leader." Kisame explained.

"For now, the plan is simple; Kisame and I will take care of Naruto because we know him better. You two will take care of anybody else around. Believe me, Naruto is strong enough to take us both on, we can only hope that we are able to accomplish this mission." Itachi said.

---

Hinata could not outrun them, but she could not fight them both either. It really didn't look good for her at this point, but she had no choice. She was better off fighting them then letting them attack her back attempting to run away. She stopped and turned back to face them since they had immediately caught up.

"Hinata, this is pointless. Come back to the base, where we can settle your doubts. You already know that if you attack, you cannot win." Mihniopaksu said.

"I can't go back Mihniopaksu-sama, I'm sorry. But at this point, I'm beginning to understand Naruto's feelings. All this time I thought it didn't matter that you all were using me, but I was wrong. We are working for a cause that I never agreed to. I never had a choice in this, and I don't want the same thing that everybody else wants. I now envy Naruto, not hate him. I consider him lucky because he was able to escape. I look back and I can't understand how I could have been so stupid. You made him kill his own mother, his last and only relative besides his brother, and I helped him even though I knew what I was doing. I was wrong all along, it's not about serving. I thought I would get my choice one day, but that's not true, I'll never be free from your world of power. Not unless I do something about it. So this is me, here, saying and swearing, because I swear to you, that I would rather die, then go back. So you can all try to take me back, and you might even succeed, but I will not live to help you any longer. My loyalty to this organization is over. Consider it a loss, but I couldn't care less, because I know that I deserve my freedom. And if you don't give it to me, then I will have to take it. Life or death, either way, I must spend it without the Akatsuki!" Hinata shouted.

"Well Hinata, I am truly sorry that you feel that way; I really am. But just like you feel as if you have no choice, neither do we. We must bring you back not matter how much you disagree. I understand your pain, but we cannot let you go. You know too much, you are too strong to simply let you pass through our fingers." Mihniopaksu said. "We are so close to attaining our goal, and we need you by our side to do that. Please, I'm only going to ask you once. I'm asking you now, not as an Akatsuki member, but as a friend and member, stand down and come back with us. Please do this Hinata; we don't want to hurt you."

"Mihniopaksu, what do you think we live for? Do we have a destiny? If so, how can you tell what that is? Do we live for our desires, or our needs? I ask myself these kind of questions everyday, but I cannot figure it out. But one thing is for sure, I am tired….tired of living for evil. Because I know in my heart, that the path that I walk, is not the right one. So I am changing paths, please do not ask me to stand down, because I cannot just like you cannot go back to the base. We are at a conflict that cannot be settled with words, but only with our skill in battle. So please, do not offend me by taking my word lightly, but allow me to fight for what I believe is right." Hinata unsheathed her sword and held it with both hands as she crouched ready to fight.

Mihniopaksu smiled. "Very well Hinata. I can honestly say that I am proud of the person that you have become. We may be enemies in this battle, but I believe you have a right to fight just as much as anybody. So don't make a mistake, or your freedom may never be granted to you. Instead, unlock the potential that I know is inside of you, and defeat all three of us right here in front of you. Don't be afraid of death, and do not be afraid to kill. Good luck."

"Hey Mihniopaksu, who's side are you on?" Deidara asked. "Let's get started already huh?"

---

Saru had been running for almost two hours, but he was not the least bit tired yet. He could run for much longer before he needed to rest or even slow down. But that was not what worried him; he could feel a powerful presence ahead. He could not tell who it was, but he could sense chakra coming from the direction he was heading.

He was ready for anything. The chakra level was very close now, he would soon reach it.

Soon enough, it became clear. He dashed from tree to tree until he landed on the same branch as a blue haired woman in an Akatsuki cloak. He vaguely remembered her face from when he and his former partner from the Shouten Haku invaded the Akatsuki base. There she was, in her cloak, facing three other Akatsuki members, one whom which he did not recognize.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't the little boy that took Naruto from us." Deidara said smiling. "It looks like you are in the wrong place at the wrong time. We are not going to let you escape. You have caused us lots of grief."

"I don't want any trouble. I'm trying to escape the Shouten." Saru said raising both of his hands signaling peace.

"It doesn't matter kid, you're going down." Deidara said.

Saru looked at all four Akatsuki members. Hinata then said, "You're escaping the Shouten?"

"Yes." Saru said.

"Well I'm escaping the Akatsuki Help me fight, and we might have a chance of surviving this." Hinata said.

"Very well." Saru said as he turned to face his three new opponents.

---

"Yamato…" Kakashi said immediately awakening from his sleep and standing up.

"Don't worry, we can all feel it." Kimotsu said as everybody's head turned toward the enemies closing in on them.

"Who do you think it is?" Yamato asked.

"I can recognize that force from anywhere," Naruto said. "It's the Akatsuki."

"How many?" Kakashi asked raising his Konoha head band that was covering his left eye to reveal a sharingan.

"There are four of them. It is Itachi and Kisame as well as two other members that I do not recognize." Naruto said. "Just be ready for a big fight. They are here for me."

ZOOM! Suddenly, all four Akatsuki members appeared in front of Naruto, Kimotsu, Kakashi, and Yamato.

Kakashi's eyes widened and his ankles buckled under him as he fell to his knees in awe.

"Kakashi, what's wrong?" Yamato asked.

"Father?" Kakashi whispered.

"So we meet again Naruto. As you know, it is time to collect. The Shouten is moving, and so must we. The only way to win them over is if we have all jinchuuriki. I'm sorry to say, but you are one of them." Itachi said.

"Itachi, you already know that I am not going to hand myself over to you. So let's just get started shall we?" Naruto said.

---

"Let's take them down!" Deidara shouted crouching about to jump forward.

"No thanks." Ryoku responded.

"What?!" Mihniopaksu said outraged. "What do you mean no thanks?"

"I'm not going to fight two children. I believe that she is fighting for a very reasonable cause and I think that two Akatsuki members are already enough. Plus, I would like to see the skill of all four of you. I need to know what I'm dealing with." Ryoku said.

"Itachi-sama will definitely hear about this!" Mihniopaksu shouted.

"Well then tell him. He can't do anything about it anyway." Ryoku said. "I've made my decision; I'm going to sit this one out. This battle is of no importance to me."

SWOOSH!!! Deidara jumped to his right as a small ball of light almost collided with his head. Deidara jumped up dodging the same light ball that came back around.

While in the air, the blonde Akatsuki member threw a small clay spider that simply disintegrated causing both the spider and the ball to disappear.

"What, no explosion?" Deidara said surprised.

"My attack will dissolve anything it touches!" Saru said from above Deidara thrusting his right fist into Deidara's face with all his strength.

Deidara fell quickly all the way down to the ground and disappeared.

"What the…" Saru said as he landed on the same branch as the two remaining Akatsuki members.

Saru ducked as Mihniopaksu swung a punch to his head. While crouching, Saru spun around swinging his leg outwards in attempt to trip is opponent.

Mihniopaksu simply did a flip over him and Ryoku onto another tree branch.

"BUSHI NO JUTSU!!!" Hinata screamed behind Mihniopaksu.

BAM! The attack collided with Mihniopaksu's barrier which he had raised with just enough time to block the attack.

Again the barrier was left with cracks all over the surface. Hinata didn't wait for anything else to happen. Right after unleashing her technique, she jumped forward right after it swinging her sword down with as much force as she could shattering the barrier.

Mihniopaksu jumped back managing to avoid death but not fast enough to avoid a scratch. Hinata had managed to cut a long vertical gash in his chest.

VOOM! Another light ball came while Mihniopaksu was still in the air jumping back.

Before the Akatsuki member could even touch the attack, a large explosion occurred in that area of the forest.

The smoke cleared leaving a small crater in the ground with trees burning everywhere within a half a mile radius.

Again, Mihniopaksu had his shield up crouched down close to the black burned ground.

Hinata was completely unharmed as well with her sword on fire. "Lucky I was able to absorb that attack." She said.

Saru was lying on his back. He stood up and noticed that now he had holes in his clothes. Ryoku was nowhere in sight.

Deidara was above the explosion range coming down on what looked to be a huge clay dragon.

"Deidara what were you thinking stupid?" Mihniopaksu shouted within his barrier.

"Mihniopaksu, leave the boy to me. I'm going to kill him!" Deidara shouted staring directly into Saru's eyes.

"Hurry up and help me out when you're done." Mihniopaksu said agreeing to Deidara's demand.

---

"I thought you were dead…" Kakashi said barely managing to stand up.

"I still am." Sakumo said.

"What are you doing with the Akatsuki?" Kakashi asked.

"They promised to let me see you one last time and that was all I needed to join them." Sakumo stated

"You have always been such a fool," Kakashi sighed.

"Times have changed son. There is nothing I can do about this anymore." Sakumo said.

"The father I know would never join such an evil organization even if his life depended on it. What happened to all your values?" Kakashi asked.

"They're dead, just like I am inside. I didn't have the courage to kill myself because I didn't want to leave you all by yourself. So I faked my death, and I escaped with hopes of finding you once again before I die. I'm glad that I have done that. Now I must keep my promise." Sakumo said.

"No. You are not Hatake Sakumo! I refuse to believe that. You can't harm me anymore Itachi, I know that my father is dead." Kakashi said slowly pulling a kunai from his pack.

"It doesn't matter what you think, but he is standing right in front of you." Kisame said. "Look, we came here to collect Naruto. We'll allow you to live if you simply hand him over."

"I don't care what their answer is," Naruto began in a dark tone. "Because I'll fight all four of you at the same time if I have to."

"Naruto, don't be foolish. You know that you will not be able to handle this battle. I assume that you have been training; I take it that it is not so light training either. I can sense that your body is tired and your chakra is low. I don't know what you have been practicing but it doesn't matter anymore because it has already weakened your senses." Itachi said.

"Don't worry Naruto; I'm not going to give you up without a fight!" Kimotsu said stepping forward. "The way I see it, we can take them down no matter what."

"Tobi, Sakumo, take the three Konoha civilians. Itachi and I will be capturing the jinchuuriki." Kisame ordered as the four Akatsuki members split up.

"I'm sorry son, but I have no choice." Sakumo said.

"Don't apologize because I don't expect you to spare my life, just like I will not spare yours. You are not my father, and I shall destroy you for trying to trick me." Kakashi said angrily.

"Naruto and I will take care of Itachi and Kisame." Yamato said.

"No Yamato. Trust me on this one; you are going to need all the help you can get." Naruto said.

"Likewise young one." Yamato said. "You have been through intensive training after all; there is no way that you can handle both of them alone."

"Please, I only ask of you one thing. Don't get in my way; this is my fight and my fight alone. If need be, I will put what I have learned into play. Trust me when I say this, I swear to you that I'm not going to lose." Naruto said. With that, he disappeared with Itachi and Kisame following after him.

"Let's go, let's go, let's go!!!" Kimotsu shouted with a large smile. His blood had already begun to boil with excitement. "Jishin no Jutsu!"

Suddenly, the ground began to depress itself in one long straight line so it looked like a long V shaped valley. As the ground began to sink, Kakashi and Yamato ran up to the sides to avoid the sinking ground while Kimotsu ran straight down the line towards the two Akatsuki members.

Sakumo jumped out of the valley as it became steeper but while in the air, he was trapped as wood quickly sprouted from the ground and encircled his body like a snake about to crush its prey.

Tobi stood still while the ground sunk at that one individual line. The V-shaped valley was becoming steeper by the second as Kimotsu ran faster and faster towards Tobi.

BOOM! The wood that had Sakumo trapped suddenly exploded and Sakumo was free to move around and he was out of the sinking earthquake.

Sakumo jumped out towards Kakashi's side whipping out a kunai bringing it down to clash with the kunai Kakashi already had in his hands. Yamato, while on the other side of the valley, jumped over to join the two relatives now engaged in battle.

Kimotsu on the other hand had finally reached his opponent. But instead of colliding with him, he dashed right past him and looked him straight into his mask. Tobi stood still but only turned his head to make contact with Kimotsu.

Tobi had one hole in his mask that encircled his right eye. The split second Kimotsu looked at his mask, was the exact same moment which the ground stopped sinking and Kimotsu fell to the floor weak and almost unconscious.

---

Naruto stood still waiting for almost twenty seconds for Kisame and Itachi to catch up with him.

Naruto was there smiling as always. "You guys need to improve your speed. Let's get started shall we?"

"Naruto, why do you have to make this so complicated? Have we not been good to you?" Kisame asked pulling out his bandaged sword from his back.

"Save your breath because you will never be able to convince me to simply go in and allow you to conquer the nation." Naruto said.

"There are other ways to persuade without using words." Itachi said activating his Mangekyou sharingan. Naruto was caught completely off guard as he fell into the deep Trans Itachi took him into.

Kisame didn't wait for a spare second. He charged at the blonde boy who was still under Itachi's Genjutsu.

Swoosh! Naruto still managed to duck as Kisame swung his sword horizontally at his opponent.

While crouching, Naruto jumped back to avoid the fire balls that were spat at him from the Uchiha.

"Harigane no Jutsu!" Naruto shouted as hundreds of strong black wires shot out from his sleeves and wrapped around Kisame and his sword as well as Itachi. The black wires kept Naruto's opponents completely still as Naruto delivered an electrical pulse through them.

Itachi disappeared with a _poof_ and his partner simply turned into a puddle.

"Why don't you guys really show yourselves? There is no point in creating bunshins because I already know your true strength. Bunshins have only one-tenth the strength the regular person does." Naruto said.

"You have to understand Naruto," Itachi said as him and Kisame jumped down from two separate trees. "It's all tactics here. That is the only reason why you were actually able to escape the Genjutsu my Bunshin had you in. Even though it was one-tenth of the power I could have had you in, it still weakened your state of mind which will in turn allow us an easier success. Why else did you think you were able to catch us in you simple wire Jutsu? That is one of the simplest ones in the book."

"Itachi, no matter how much you may try, you will not win today. I might not be able to kill you both but I am not going to allow you to go back unharmed. I promise you that at least one of you is not going home tonight." Naruto said firmly.

---

Saru knew that he was mismatched. For some reason he felt as if he stood a better chance against Mihniopaksu than against his current opponent. There was only one way to switch, he had to provoke Mihniopaksu.

The task was simple and efficient. He created a light ball and had it chase Deidara around the air while he created another with his other hand and destroyed Mihniopaksu's index finger on his left hand by catching him off guard.

Mihniopaksu screamed in anger as he left Hinata alone and chased after Saru.

Saru's plan worked better than expected because as Mihniopaksu made his way over to Saru's location, Deidara caught sight of this and became angry while still being chased by the light ball.

BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM!!!!!!! Seven explosions occurred in Mihniopaksu's place when Deidara's ego got the best of him. But when the clay artist concentrated more on blowing up his teammate more than dodging his attacker, the light ball scraped the tip of the wing of the bird he was flying on which in turn caused it to explode as well sending Deidara way down far to the ground in smoking robes.

Hinata didn't allow Deidara to hit the ground without getting hurt as she jumped high up and stabbed Deidara in the chest. "Shidenissen no Jutsu!" Hinata shouted while her sword still pierced Deidara's body.

A lightning bolt shot down from the blackened sky at Hinata's sword and struck Deidara causing even more damage to the Akatsuki member.

With that Hinata removed her blade and landed safely on the ground near Deidara who barely managed to land on his feet. He clutched his chest in pain as he could feel his flesh cooking from the lightning strike.

Mihniopaksu on the other hand managed to dodge three of the explosions after the other four destroyed his barrier. This caused him to be even more furious.

"Die you little monster!!!" Mihniopaksu screamed at Saru. "Feel my wrath KENKON NO JUTSU!!!!"

Saru witnessed as his new opponent formed a few hand seals and appeared suddenly in front of him. Mihniopaksu shoved both of his open palms onto Saru's chest sending him flying through the air.

Saru hit the ground, but he didn't hit where he anticipated. He looked around and he saw the universe all around him.

"Genjutsu…" Saru said.

"CORRECT." Mihniopaksu's voice boomed in from all directions. "THIS IS MY STRONGEST JUTSU THAT I HAVE DEVELOPED. IT IS THE ONLY GENJUTS THAT CANNOT BE BROKEN. UNLIKE ALL GENJUTSU'S THAT ONLY CAUSE MENTAL DAMAGE, THIS TECHNIUQE LITERALLY DESTROYS YOUR BRAIN CELLS AT AN EXPONENTIAL RATE. IT DOESN'T MESS WITH YOU MIND, IT DISSOLVES IT. HERE, YOU ARE AT MY COMMAND, AND THIS IS YOUR LAST MOMENT." Mihniopaksu explained.

The billions of stars and planets all around him exploded into many more sharp shards all in Saru's direction. However, right before a single shard could be connected with Saru's body, the Jutsu stopped and the world was back to normal. Saru automatically knew why he was saved: Kyu.

Mihniopaksu gasped as he saw the leader of the Shouten appear and ruin his Genjutsu on his subordinate.

"You are not in your place." Kyu said softly. "Leave now."

Mihniopaksu said nothing. He simply dashed over to Deidara who was coughing up blood and dashed back where Ryoku was standing.

"Let's leave now!" Mihniopaksu shouted to Ryoku.

"Kyu, it's been a long time hasn't it?" Ryoku said to the leader of the Shouten.

Kyu turned his head to see who spoke to him and his eyes widened. "Ryoku, I knew we would eventually cross paths. So it seems you decided to join the Akatsuki."

"Well you know, any way to stop you." Ryoku said. "I see you never changed, not matter what we did to your body and power."

"I will never stop until I rule the earth. That is how it was intended before you and your friend interfered." Kyu said. "I never thought you would join the organization who murdered your son."

"Garou…" Ryoku said.

"Indeed Sukomi Ryoku, indeed…" Kyu said. "We shall definitely meet again, under extremer circumstances. Next time I see you, I'll be able to give you what I owe you. You prolonged my plans, but you can never destroy them."

"We'll see about that now won't we?" Ryoku said as the three Akatsuki members dashed off into the distance.

Kyu turned to Saru and Hinata who were dirty from the battle and panting as ever.

He put his hand on Saru and said, "Saru, I apologize for my behavior earlier. But I was beginning to doubt that you would keep your word. Come back to the base, and I will show you that when I say something, I am not lying to you."

Hinata could feel the evil so powerful that she felt that she could cut it with her sword. She dashed at Kyu with all her strength but as she got closer, her courage left her and she fell to the floor unconscious.

---

"Kimotsu!" Kakashi shouted as he witnessed his teammate fall to the ground.

"Go help him Kakashi; I'll be fine for now!" Yamato said.

Kakashi ran down with great speed to help out. Tobi was approaching Kimotsu as well. But as Kakashi ran down the steep decrease, he used his running to build momentum. He jumped and whirled around and using the momentum, kicked Tobi in the face with great force.

Tobi flew at the ground as his mask was knocked off. Kakashi gasped again, another surprise.

There lay the Akatsuki member, missing his left eye and his right eye a sharingan.

"Obito?" Kakashi asked.

"Hey Kakashi." Obito said smiling.

"But how?" Kakashi asked. "How did you survive the rock slide?"

"That day that I attained my sharingan, I managed to copy the Jutsu where shinobi are able to be one with stone. That is precisely what I did. I didn't have time to go back out, I simply had time to leave as quickly as possible and put myself back together. I joined the Akatsuki for the same reason as your father. But I am not going to betray you. I just wanted to show you how much stronger I've gotten." Obito said. "Even when I was cured, I didn't want to go back because I knew you would always be better than me. But that's not the case anymore. I trained my whole life just so I can come back and beat you."


	27. Rain Before the Hurricane Part Two

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Chapter Twenty-seven: Rain before the Hurricane Part Two

Naruto dashed from one tree to another barely avoiding the huge fireball that engulfed his previous hiding spot.

Naruto was exhausted and he knew that he was definitely on the losing side seeing as how Itachi and Kisame were both a quarter as tired as he was. He panted like a dog that ran a long distance. He crouched silently as he gasped for air through the smoke everywhere around him. He had to do something.

"Zetsu, I thank you for showing me this move." Naruto said to himself softly. He counted to three and whirled around the tree he was behind, facing his opponents a few feet away from him.

"So you've decided to finally show your face." Kisame said smiling deviously.

"Yes, and in all honesty, I don't think I can take you both on at once. So I'm going to have to kill one of you here." Naruto said panting still.

"Oukan Ira no Jutsu…" Naruto said concentrating hard and forming hand seals quickly.

Sweat ran down Naruto's face as he spread his hands out and pointed his arms towards Itachi.

The attack was quick and unexpected. VOOM! Suddenly, a crown of branches appeared above Itachi's head and swiftly placed itself on the Uchiha's hair. It sunk down as the small thorns protruding from the wood grew extremely fast engulfing Itachi in a matter of seconds. Finally, the branches that covered Itachi completely constricted crushing Itachi's body allowing blood to ooze through the cracks.

"Itachi-san!" Kisame shouted as he immediately swung his sword at the branches. The branches were cut off leaving Itachi alive and unable to battle. He fell to the ground covered in his own blood almost unconscious.

"That was a good move Naruto. But I bet you're almost out of chakra completely." Kisame said. "While I on the other hand, have yet to run dry."

"It was a small sacrifice that I had to make. I couldn't take both of you on at the same time like I said." Naruto said standing tall.

"Well, then I suppose it's just you and me now." Kisame smiled as the bandages on his sword unwrapped to reveal the large purple spikes pointed downwards.

"It's been a while since you've fought me with your sword." Naruto said.

"Well this is a serious matter. I don't consider you weak, but I consider you fatigued enough for my favor. I know that I can win this match Naruto. You're coming home." Kisame said.

"If I can't kill Itachi, then I guess I'll have to kill you." Naruto said.

---

Hinata awoke on the concrete floor in an ill-lit room. She stood up after noticing that her sword was gone. She looked around and realized that she was in the Shouten base behind bars. Her solitude felt painful yet good. For the first time in a while, she was not with the Akatsuki.

But that did not mean that everything was good, she had to get out of this place as well. She looked past the bars to observe the room and saw that the only light giving sources were two candles at the ends of her cell. She could see nothing but darkness beyond her chamber.

She sat back down on the cold hard floor to meditate. That was her only option at this point. She had to be patient before she could escape. In addition, she needed the rest.

Meanwhile, Saru was with the Shouten leader inside the special room that held the three bodies.

"I know you've been here before Saru. Now I'm going to explain to you everything that's going on here. It is essential for us to earn your trust, and I believe that you've earned it." Kyu said.

Saru was calm now unlike before and he stood straight and looked his fearsome leader directly in the eyes with an emotionless expression.

"Many years ago, there were nine countries that held each such powerful warriors that they all came together and had a meeting. They decided that to help rule the earth and keep it in order. They would each create a demon to help them conquer over all the other countries." Kyu began.

"So that was done, the nine powerful warriors gathered seventy-five percent of their power and were able to form the nine demons that you have heard about. I created the Kyubbi, and the man you saw earlier, created the wolf demon. His name is Sukomi Ryoku, and he was one of us back then. We were feared throughout the lands known as the Nine Demon Lords." Kyu said.

"But before long, each of us became greedy and measured our power by the amount of land that we had conquered. It became a blood thirsty war between the Nine Demon Lords to rule the world themselves. Ryoku eventually had a change of heart when his son was born. He realized that the fight over territory was pointless, and he gave up his fighting days as a Demon Lord by sealing his demon into his son.

"He joined forces with many different countries to kill each of the Nine Demon Lords. He succeeded in killing seven of them, leaving the demons scattered over the countries. The demons without their masters became even more ruthless and attacked lands. That is the reason why many of them were sealed in different people, to contain the demons so that chaos could be avoided.

"However, when the time came that Ryoku confronted me, he alone was not enough, for I had become the most powerful Demon Lord of the nine of us. He turned to the Hokage of the Konoha village for aid. Them together proved to be a fine team. Ryoku managed to seal my soul inside the Fourth's body, as well as the Kyubbi which I created inside the Fourth's son: Uzumaki Naruto. This was all the will of the Hokage. He decided to sacrifice his and his son's life in order to bring peace to his village.

"But my willpower was too strong so I conquered his mind and came into control over his body. He lives inside me, not dead, but dormant; unconscious of everything. That is why you see three clear coffins in front of you today. Each of them contains different people inside. All of these bodies are dead but important to us. The first one is Zabuza, the man who Haku strove to protect and strove to revive by joining the Shouten. The second clear coffin is your brother Sora, who I know that you dearly miss. The third, is my body, completely healthy but missing my soul.

"That is why I need Naruto; moreover, I need my demon, the Kyubbi. In this body, I am only able to perform twenty-five percent of my full power without my demon. The only way to join myself with my body once again, is to absorb the demon I created. With that power, I can make the transfer to my body, which is capable of holding all that power. When the transition is complete, the Shouten will make its name throughout the earth." Kyu explained.

Saru's legs shook in fear as he stared at Kyu's actual body inside the coffin. The body had long red hair and it wore armor. Then he looked back at his brother missing his rock arm that Saru had now. A tear fell from his eye as Saru realized that he had almost forgotten why he joined the Shouten. He had become thirsty for power when he attained his brother's arm. The quench for power clouded Saru's real reason for being. He bowed his head in shame as he made that realization about himself. He wanted Sora back; he wanted to see his brother one more time.

"I need to gain your trust. The way I'm going to do that is by reviving Zabuza. I know that he means nothing to you and Haku is dead, but I want you to see that I was not lying about my promise. I will keep my promise to Haku just like he kept his promise by serving in the Shouten. My only regret is not reviving him sooner so that he and Haku could be joined one last time. But I do it now so that you can see that your only friend did not die in vain. I want you to know that the reason I do not revive your brother now is because I cannot revive him without my original body. Zabuza is much weaker than your brother, so I am capable of this task if I concentrate all my power to revive him.

"I want you to see Saru that I will keep my promise to not only Haku but you as well. Now you know everything and I want you by our side. Aid me in attaining the Kyubbi, and I will finally be able to reunite you and your brother once more." Kyu said.

Saru was still silent as Kyu walked over slowly to Zabuza's coffin. He removed his cloak to reveal the Fourth's body.

Kyu then raised his arms and places his open hands on the clear coffin. Suddenly, the coffin was engulfed with red chakra. The chakra was not flowing calmly around the coffin. Instead it was penetrating the clear substance that contained Zabuza and entered Zabuza himself. The Ice-like substance began to disappear and shrink slowly as more and more chakra rushed into Zabuza's body.

Saru's tears rushed down his cheek as he witnessed the miracle of the dead being brought back to life. Kyu groaned in pain as his skin began to shrivel up as if he were aging at an extreme speed.

Soon enough, the substance was gone, and Zabuza opened his eyes for the first time in many years. He slowly stepped down from the stand and looked around. The Fourth's body went back to normal immediately when he stopped transferring his chakra. He fell to the floor very weak and barely managed to stand back up.

Kiran rushed into the room and lifted Kyu up on his shoulders. "I got you my lord." He said calmly and took his leader out of the room to go rest.

On his way out, Kyu said softly to Saru, "Explain…what has…happened…" With that the two superior Shouten members left the room leaving Saru alone with Zabuza.

---

His shadow simply darkened as the sun rose higher into the brighter sky. It was almost mid-day and he had finally figured it out.

Sasuke stood up from his kneeling position. He simply glared down at the grave of his previous master whom he had managed to destroy before he himself was destroyed.

"You had it coming eventually old snake." Sasuke said. "I'm here to tell you, that I finally know what I have to do now. No matter how hard you tried, it was I who conquered you in the end. You tried to poison my perspective on life, but it only took one loss to bring me back to the light."

The stone stood way over the dead body of Orochimaru, Sasuke's old master. Sasuke buried his body out of courtesy.

"I want you to know that I don't hate you. I'm not capable of hating anyone but my brother. But I finally realized why he did it. He was power-hungry, just like I have become. Your plan was to take over my body, but I managed to kill you before you did it." Sasuke said turning his back for the last time on the grave stone.

"I'm going to search for Naruto. He has my answers, I just know it." Sasuke said just before he walked off slowly.

---

"That is a death match Kakashi. And I want you to treat it like one, because I don't want you to fall behind to much." Obito said smiling.

"Obito, there are bigger things that are going on than what is between us." Kakashi said.

"I don't care about anything else. I have waited my whole life for this moment, and I will show you what I'm capable of!" Obito shouted.

"I don't have time for games!" Kakashi said rushing upwards to help out Yamato who was clearly losing against Sakumo.

Obito simply appeared in Kakashi's way saying, "Who ever said I was playing around? You don't have a choice friend, if you can't take me seriously, then I'm going to have to wound you enough that you will. I won't let you pass until you have defeated me."

"What do you mean by defeat?" Kakashi asked gritting his teeth in impatience.

"I want you to kill me. Or I'll never let you pass." Obito said.

"I thought you were on my side!" Kakashi said.

"I never said that. All I said is that I would never betray you. But I am on my own side. Fight me or you will die here. If you can win, I won't ever get in your way again." Obito said.

"Well I guess that means I have no choice…" Kakashi said. "Yamato-san, hang on! I'll be there soon!"

"Take you time!" Yamato said dodging a stab from Sakumo's kunai and blocking a kick following after. "I'll be fine!"

"Don't be too sure!" Sakumo said landing a kick to Yamato's face. He stumbled backwards on his feet but didn't fall to the floor. He touched his face to find out that he was bleeding from his broken nose.

"I can guarantee you that Kakashi is going to be a while if he makes it out alive." Sakumo said. "You won't be able to hold me off much longer either."

"I will do whatever it takes to keep the world safe from criminals like you!" Yamato said fiercely.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Who ever stated that I was a criminal? If you recall, I'm supposed to be dead. I saved my teammates long ago and that cost us the mission. The whole village turned against me including my teammates. The shame was too much so everybody thinks that I killed myself. I was once a much respected member of Konoha. There was never a point in my life that I was a criminal and I sure am not now." Sakumo justified.

"Then what are you fighting for? Why are you in the Akatsuki?" Yamato said.

"Because my time has come, and I want to have a good fight before I go down. All I wanted before I died was to see my son again. That mission has been accomplished. It was the Akatsuki who granted me my wish. And I intend to grant theirs by keeping my end of the bargain and fighting for their cause. How much longer do you think and old man like me will last?" Sakumo asked.

"Well in my eyes you became a criminal as soon as you intended to follow through with your promise. You pledged you allegiance to the Akatsuki! That organization wants nothing good except chaos and destruction. If you have the guts to aid those in their horrible mission, then you should be stopped at all costs no matter what!" Yamato said rushing forward with his hands outward towards his opponent.

Wood came from underground and like to gongs banging against each other, the wood on opposite sides of Sakumo rushed in to crush the white haired man.

Sakumo, gathering chakra to all four limbs stretched out and stopped the wood from crushing him.

Sakumo shook as he used all his strength to withstand the pressure that threatened to end his life.

Yamato continued to run forward jumping up and kicking Sakumo straight in the abdomen sending him flying through the air.

Sakumo stopped flying backwards as another stand of wood caught his falling. But the wood that Yamato had created has a long and sharp cone-shaped structure that pierced the chest of Sakumo.

Sakumo immediately detached himself from the wood that had impaled his body and he fell to the ground in pain as blood leaked down his body at fast rate.

"I won't let you take the lives of innocent people!" Yamato shouted walking towards his opponent with anger. Sweat dropped down his whole body as he wiped the wet dirt from his face. Yamato was getting very tired.

---

BAM, BAM, BAM!!! Naruto's three kicks in the air towards Kisame were blocked with the handle of the Akatsuki's sword. Kisame took his sword and quickly swung it at Naruto.

Naruto jumped back as the sword missed him by a few inches. Naruto fell to the floor as more chakra drained out of him.

"My sword doesn't have to make contact in order to drain the chakra from your system." Kisame smiled. "Face it Naruto, you are too exhausted to win this battle. That is the reason you have resulted to close combat. You have no moves left in you. With just Taijutsu in your current state, you can never win."

Naruto stood up weakly and said softly, "No…I won't' lose to you…"

"That's not your choice anymore. You wasted too much chakra by taking down Itachi. Luckily he's still alive." Kisame said looking at his bloody opponent behind him.

"That's it…" Naruto said to himself. "If I attack Itachi, Kisame has no choice but to turn defensive. I need to attack Itachi as a distraction and use the last of my chakra to conjure up a move that will finish Kisame…Then I can just take down Itachi with my kunai." Naruto whispered.

Naruto stood still for a moment simply staring at his opponent thinking of a plan. Suddenly, he rushed in towards Kisame but jumped to the right just before colliding with him.

"RASENGAN!" Naruto shouted as his right hand pulled back and shot forward at Kisame's face with a blue chakra sphere in his open palm.

BOOM! Kisame's sword was just in the way to absorb the Rasengan completely. Naruto didn't wait to land on the floor for his next attack. While still in motion, he gathered chakra in his right foot and managed to kick Kisame's chest sending him flying back.

Naruto landed on the ground just before Itachi. He whipped out a kunai and swung it over his head just about to strike down. But the blonde boy did not anticipate that Itachi's body was a Bunshin.

Naruto was surprised to find that when the smoke cleared from the _poof_, there was large hole under the location of Itachi's Bunshin. It was from that hole that another Kisame suddenly came up and delivered a strong uppercut to Naruto's jaw sending upwards into the air.

The Kisame that was kicked back had finally ran and caught up with his opponent who was now traveling towards the sky. He jumped forward with his sword overhead swinging it downwards clashing with Naruto's body sending him straight back to the ground.

Naruto hit the ground but used his hands to bounce him back up and dashed back. He barely managed to avoid the sword that struck down again and hit the ground.

Naruto gasped for air even harder now making it quite apparent that he was fatigued. He looked at the two Kisame's who stood tall next to each other. One carried a sword while the other didn't.

"Nice try but I already anticipated that move." Kisame said smiling.

"Where is Itachi's real body?" Naruto asked harshly.

"Why in the world would I ever tell you that?" Kisame asked.

"Because you are about to die!" Naruto screamed in anger.

"Where do you get these threats from? I don't see how you can say such things when you are in your condition." Kisame said smiling. "You are not only outnumbered but you are completely worn out."

"I'm not done yet…" Naruto said stumbling on his feet.

"Look at that, you can't even stand up straight without tripping over yourself." Kisame said.

Naruto only smiled as he fell backwards landing on his butt.

Naruto continued to smile as it now developed into a small chuckle.

Naruto's laugh aggravated Kisame by the second. "What are you laughing at you little pipsqueak?"

Naruto simply said, "What's so funny is that…I'm not even close to being done yet." Naruto reached for the chakra binders on his two arms and neck. He removed them and stood up.

"What the hell are those?" Kisame asked.

"I'm pretty sure you noticed that I was in the middle of training before you came. I fell unconscious earlier from the exercise and I awoke with three of these on. Apparently you are not familiar with chakra binders." Naruto said with a big grin.

"Chakra binders?" Kisame asked with a frown.

"Precisely; one chakra binder is good enough to prevent the chakra flow of a regular shinobi. So basically, I have only been using about half of my chakra up until this point. Do not make the large mistake of thinking you were close to winning." Naruto said. "Now tell me where Itachi is, or I will beat it out of you."

---

"Where am I?" Zabuza asked still looking around at his surroundings.

"You are in the Shouten base?" Saru said knowing he would have to explain more.

"What are you talking about? Who are you?" Zabuza asked.

"The Shouten is a powerful organization led by a man who longs for world domination. Haku was one of the members of the Shouten." Saru said sadly.

"What do you mean was?" Zabuza asked.

"He joined this organization after the leader promised him that he would revive you from your death." Saru began.

"My…death?"

"Do you not remember anything?" Saru asked.

Zabuza stayed silent.

"I don't know the story but you died protecting Haku. He only wanted to do the same for you by joining the Shouten. But sadly, he died himself before he was able to accomplish his dream which was to see you back alive with him." Saru said. "He didn't explain to me how you died."

"I think I'm beginning to remember…" Zabuza said placing his hands on his head. "I remember…the memory is vague…"

"What happened?" Saru asked.

"I remember…smoke, everywhere…a fire. Haku and I, against hundreds of villagers and shinobi. They were all angry for some reason…I can't remember why…" Zabuza said closing his eyes in concentration.

"Did you burn down their village?" Saru asked.

"No…we were…just passing through…but my name was well known. And they thought that I had caused the fire. They surrounded us; they all attacked several by several. Haku and I fought most of them off but as I became distracted with three villagers, I was stabbed by a man from the crowd. My world then went black as I thought I saw his arm as a spear turn back into a normal hand." Zabuza said. "That is all I can remember. Then I woke up here and you are telling me that Haku is dead."

Saru squinted his eyes in wonder. He knew that the man Zabuza described was Eight. But he could not believe that Kyu would send Eight to do such a thing just to get Haku on the Shouten. That would be just too evil.

Saru decided to keep his mouth shut seeing as how Zabuza was already stressed out enough.

"And what were you to Haku?" Zabuza asked sighing sadly.

"I was his friend. He pledged his life for the Shouten to see you and I know that he would have liked you to do the same." Saru said. At this point, he wanted to help Kyu as much as he could so he could see Sora again. He now knew that it was possible. Saru was only a bit saddened to think about Haku and how he never reached his dream.

Zabuza stretched his body and then sat down on a large rock. "Is that really what he wanted?"

"Yes, that is what he told me." Saru lied.

"Then I will devote my life to serving the man that Haku served. I will not let Haku's death be in vain. The least I can do is grant his dying wish…" Zabuza said firmly.

---

Kakashi's sharingan had copied over one-thousand moves, but it seemed that no matter how many moves he had copied, the single eye of Obito surpassed his in every way.

Obito didn't seem to be lying when he stated that he had become much stronger. He moved with agility that Kakashi only saw with Naruto, and he punched with strength which he had only felt with Tsunade.

Uchiha Obito, it was clear, that the many years of training Obito had done, he had definitely lived up to his clan's name. His skill in every aspect of battle was simply appealing. He moved with grace while inflicting power twice as much as Kakashi. He dodged Kakashi's attacks with a sincere face and blocked every move with ease. Obito had surely grown from the last time they had met.

"Houka Juutan!" Obito said performing a series of unique hand seals that included not only his fingers and palms, but his arms and elbows as well.

Suddenly, the ground Kakashi was standing on turned to fire. A long pathway of flames unexpectedly appeared at the angled area that Kimotsu had created earlier. It was as if a long rug of inferno stretching for almost a mile had been laid down before Kakashi's feet.

Kakashi avoided the fire by simply jumping to the side now standing on higher ground than his opponent. "That was a waste of chakra." Kakashi stated as Obito stood still on the fire.

The change was gradual, but soon enough, Kakashi noticed the transformation. It was almost as if it was Genjutsu; Obito, seemed to emerge with the flames and flicker and wave as the fire did. Soon enough, he had disappeared as if he himself had become his technique.

Kakashi looked to his left and right but there was no sight of him. All he could see was the long rug of fire stretch out on both sides for a very long distance.

"Obito where are you?" Kakashi asked.

The noise from the fire was a harbinger of the chaos about to be unleashed. It came from the flaming rug, as it seemed to shrink from both ends, as if the middle were pulling the fire back in.

Soon enough, the fire simply shrunk until there was nothing left except a trail of glistening dirt. The fire was gone and it was only moments until the large explosion came after.

The explosion covered the whole area of the depression stretching up to fifty feet high. Kakashi could never have seen it coming. As the grass died in flames, Kakashi squatted down with his hands over his head in protection. When the explosion disappeared, he stood up to face his opponent who was standing straight across from him.

Kakashi could barely stand as his back sustained third degree burns and he had cuts all over his body ripping his clothing everywhere.

"With enough heat, you can turn sand into glass." Obito said. "That trail of fire did that exactly. Then, an explosion was all I needed to send that glass onto your body cutting it everywhere. Kakashi, I have already won." Obito said.

"Not yet…" Kakashi said sternly as electricity began to flow from his left hand. "I don't care how, but I must stop you now. This ends here, I must save Yamato. I do this not for you or for me, but for the good of Konoha. I don't have time to be playing games! Obito, today, is the day that you will see no mercy from me!" Kakashi screamed ready to drive his technique into his best friend.

---

"Your time is up old man…" Yamato said tiredly to his opponent.

"That may be so. But I never intended to kill anyone." Sakumo said with a small smirk on his face.

"What? But you just said-" Yamato said as his eyes widened with surprise.

"I know what I said young man but I didn't mean it. I just wanted a good exercise. However, I have no reason left to live, which is why I am fine as I am. My time is up and I am happy to-" Sakumo stopped in mid sentence as his eyes drifted over to his son who had a raikiri in his hand about to drive into Obito.

Sakumo stood up immediately as more blood gushed out. In a flash he was between his son and his temporary comrade. "…Ka..kashi…" Sakumo said as more blood dripped down the side of his mouth.

Kakashi gasped as he saw that instead of his hand being inside of Obito's chest, it was in his father's.

"Father!" Kakashi said still surprised.

"Kakashi…don't…kill your…friends…It will only…bring…you…suff.." Sakumo said as his eyes lost focus and his body crumpled to the floor.

"FATHER!" Kakashi screamed in awe. He looked down at his hand that was stained with the blood of the innocent, and then he looked back up at his former friend who was panting. Obito had a sincere look on his face as he bowed his head in respect for the old man.

"I…am sorry Obito. I shouldn't have lost my temper." Kakashi said as tears began to flow down his face as he too bowed his head in respect.

"There is nothing to apologize for, because you did nothing wrong in the first place…" Obito said sadly as he crouched over to help his best friend carry his dead father.

Yamato, having witnessed this whole event, turned his head to face forward, looking through the forest. "…" He stumbled a bit as he whispered to himself, "Naruto…" Those were the last words that left Yamato's mouth before his eyes shut closed and he fell down to the floor unconscious from fatigue.

---

"Kisame! This will be your end!" Naruto screamed as he jumped high into the air forming hand seals.

Kisame jumped back as Naruto's technique began to take effect. The earth began to move like an ocean at Naruto's command. It moved towards Kisame rising up about to engulf him.

But Kisame was ready; he swung his sword fiercely at the earth breaking it to pieces. He jumped up barely managing to avoid the earth that attempted to wrap around his leg.

Kisame performed hand seals while in the air while he threw his sword up. On his way down, the earth rose up like a Tsunami, threatening to overcome Kisame's body and crush it.

When Kisame descended, he thrust both of his hands down at the growing ground. When his hands and the earth connected, and explosion occurred between them.

BOOM! It was as if the ocean itself had been summoned. The earth about to swallow Kisame crumbled under the pressure of the water bomb that had just detonated. The water fell down along with the rubble drowning the trees with the amount of liquid that rushed down from Kisame's hands.

"Naruto you will never kill me!" Kisame shouted as he landed on his feet in the new ocean that he had created.

Naruto came down as well and immediately ran after his opponent with clenched fists.

Kisame's sword came down just in time for the Akatsuki member to hit Naruto with it. Naruto flew to the side as a Kisame Bunshin arose from the water and swiftly pounded Naruto down underneath the water.

Kisame once again formed hand seals saying, "Suiton, Goshoku-zame!" He put his hand to the water and let chakra flow from his five fingers.

Naruto watched from below Kisame, under water, as the chakra from his hand suddenly turned into five blue glowing sharks.

"First meal." Kisame said with a smile as one of the five sharks swam quickly to attack Naruto.

Naruto swam to the side barely avoiding the large shark that swam past him.

"Second meal."

The second shark came from under Naruto and collided with Naruto from behind, hitting his back with its nose. Naruto was thrown forward as the third shark came about to swallow him up.

"Rasengan!" Naruto shouted as he drove the blue sphere of chakra into the third shark. The front half of the shark dissolved but simply regenerated itself with the water.

"Fourth meal." Kisame said with a huge grin on his face.

The fourth shark came just as Naruto hit the third shark. BAM! Hitting Naruto from above, the fourth shark sent him down deeper into the water.

"FIFTH MEAL!" Kisame shouted.

All five sharks gathered before Naruto could recuperate and slammed him into the ocean floor creating a crater.

Naruto was left at the bottom barely able to keep his eyes open. His breath was out and he was about to swallow water. His eyes became heavy as his mind drifted back to a distant memory…

---

"I must warn you Fishy-san I have been practicing a lot since I have been training." Naruto said at seven years old. Each year, Naruto had been given to a different member of Akatsuki for individual training. Kisame was Naruto's fifth mentor.

"Naruto, one thing you learn in life is that no matter how strong you think you are, there is always someone stronger out there in the world. That is why you must keep practicing." Kisame said already taking a liking to his young apprentice.

"Not stronger than me!" Naruto said grinning.

"When you're older, you will understand that a fight is not the right time to smile." Kisame said. "In the future, you will not fight for training, if you lose, you will die."

"But that's why I am getting stronger each day so that I can avoid that right?" Naruto asked looking up to Kisame who was so tall in Naruto's eyes.

"Of course. Now, I want you to prepare yourself and go at me with all that you have, because we are going to fight right now." Kisame said. "Show me what you have learned with us in the past four years."

THREE HOURS LATER…

Kisame managed to pull Naruto out from the water just before the small boy drowned. Naruto sat up on the water coughing out all the water he had swallowed.

"Fishy-san, I almost died!" Naruto shouted with tears in his eyes.

"Like I said Naruto, things are not always going to be so easy. You did very well for our first battle. But you can't lose to that move anymore." Kisame said. "That move usually kills the opponent if they are hit with it. You are lucky that you used a barrier to block three of the sharks' attacks. The other two were almost enough to kill you." Kisame said.

Naruto stood up with a determined look saying, "Kisame-sama, I promise you that I will NEVER fall for that move again…"

Kisame smiled as he patted Naruto on the head. "Come on, let's head back. Training's over for today. Lucky that you had Mihniopaksu teach you that barrier huh?"

---

Naruto realized that he could not lose here. The world was counting on him, and he had a promise to keep. He regained strength and screamed in the water as he accessed a large amount of chakra from his body. He transferred the chakra to all over his body allowing his muscles to work twice as good as before.

He jumped up from the crater he was in and he was immediately out of the water high into the air. As he came down, so did the red rasengan in his hand. "Oodama Bomu Rasengan!" Naruto shouted as he drove the ball into the water.

BOOM! The water simply moved the side allowing Naruto and his opponent to finally reach the ground. The water disappeared when Kisame released his technique. The earth below Naruto was wet, but that made Naruto even more determined.

"I told you didn't I?" Naruto asked. "I will never fall for that trick again."

Kisame smiled as the earth overtook him in an instant forming a large ball around his body trapping him. The large earth ball suddenly compressed crushing everything inside.

Naruto released his technique to find that Kisame was not even in the large ball in the first place.

"If you are not in there, then you must be HERE!" Naruto screamed as he punched the ground with tremendous power. The force created yet another crater that left Naruto barely standing, gasping for air, and Kisame on his back, bleeding from all over his body.

"So my Jutsu got you after all…" Naruto said.

Kisame simply smiled and couldn't help but feel proud that Naruto had remembered his promise. He laid his head back and passed away.

Naruto sighed in exhaustion as he stared at his old mentor who he had surpassed. "I told you didn't I?" Naruto said to his dead opponent. "I won't let both of you escape."

Naruto sighed once again as he realized that Itachi would recover and be out to get him once more in the future. "Next time, I won't let anyone of you escape." He vowed.

Authors Note: hey guys please review this one seeing as how I really, really appreciate what you have to say about my story. There are only two more chapters after this until A Destiny Altered is finished. I would greatly appreciate any review possible. Thank you.


	28. Infiltration

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Chapter Twenty-Eight: Infiltration

"Kyu stop where you are!" Ryoku shouted.

Kyu stopped in his tracks with his back turned to the man who called his name. "So you brought a friend?"

"We won't let you continue your destruction!" Ryoku said referring to his comrade the fourth Hokage.

Kyu turned around slowly. His long red hair practically covered his bare and muscular back. He wore dark black pants with a blood red sash on his waist.

"Sukomi Ryoku, I have heard what you have been doing. You have taken down seven Demon Lords. Why are you resulting to this?" Kyu asked.

"Because I have realized we are neither in the right path nor in our right minds. I simply can't just let chaos take over this world and let everyone suffer." Ryoku said firmly.

"I know why you have had a change of heart." Kyu said. "It's because of your son isn't it? I'm sure he'll grow up to be a strong boy."

"The point is, I won't let you continue on any longer! Surrender your way of life and we will spare you!" Ryoku shouted.

"You don't seem to understand do you?" Kyu asked. "I can't stop anymore. I am the strongest shinobi in the world, and I shall let the world know it. Fight me if you want to, but I won't go down easy. This world is mine for the taking, and I will fulfill my desires."

"What happens if you do conquer the world huh? What then?" Ryoku asked.

"I will take it one step at a time. But one thing is for sure, I won't let you stop me from succeeding!" Kyu shouted flying into the air raising his hands up high.

BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM! There the Kyubbi was, ready to fight under the control of its creator, Kyu.

"Arashi, I truly appreciate you aiding me in this. But I just want to ask one more time, are you sure you want to do this?" Ryoku asked.

"I will do anything to protect my village and my people." The Fourth Hokage stated.

"Very well, then you must seal the Kyubbi, and I will seal Kyu." Ryoku said.

"When I am done, I want you to seal him inside of me." Arashi said firmly.

"Do you realize that if that happens, he will be trying to escape until he succeeds? If he manages to get out, then it's over. If you sense that he is close to breaking free, you have to kill him and yourself." Ryoku instructed.

---

"Naruto-san, you're awake!" Kyozoku said as Naruto slowly opened his eyes to a bright room.

He slowly sat up looking around. Kyozoku was the only one in the room other than Naruto himself. "Where are we?" He asked with his eyes still squinted adjusting to the light.

"We are in the village of Konoha." Kyozoku responded. "Ryu, Ketsu, and I ran to you as fast as we could. The water came and we knew that something was happening. But by the time we arrived, the water was gone and you were unconscious next to a dead Akatsuki member. I assume you were the cause of his death?"

"Yes, but the other escaped me." Naruto said. "Where is everybody else?" He asked.

"Ketsu is guarding the village while Ryu is out running errands." Kyozoku said. "We decided to help them out since they allowed us to stay without any charge. Yamato is in the next room recovering as well. Everybody else is at Kakashi's dad's funeral including one of the Akatsuki members who turned out to be Kakashi's long-lost friend." She explained.

"Kyozoku, we don't have anymore time. I know what we have to do." Naruto said.

"What is that Naruto-kun?"

"We have to infiltrate the Shouten base. This has to end here before things get out of hand again. The other Akatsuki member that I fought happened to be the leader who I messed up pretty badly. Now that they have recruited more members, they will stop at nothing to retrieve the demon inside of me. I can't let that happen. At the same time, the Shouten is about to take action. However, we can turn the tables our way if we have the element of surprise." Naruto said standing up and rushing out of the room before Kyozoku could say anything else.

Naruto stepped out of the building half-naked. He had no shirt and white pants that were very light and cozy. He had a very muscular body that seemed to glow in the moonlight. The night sky was bright with the luminescent moon.

He simply took one step forward and jumped to the roof of the hospital he was in.

"Seems like you are in a hurry." Ketsu said from atop the roof that Naruto had just jumped to.

"Good; this saves me the trouble of finding you. We have to leave immediately." Naruto said. "We must go and infiltrate the Shouten base."

"Well I would jump right to it but I have bad news for you: we don't know the location brother." Ketsu said.

"I do." Naruto confirmed. "When Kagai died, I searched his mind for all that I needed to know. I learned a lot."

"Well why don't you explain it to me then?" Ketsu asked.

"I would rather explain it when Ryu and Kyozoku are both present so I only have to tell the story once. But we have to move fast." Naruto said.

"I agree, let's gather them now." Ketsu said with a smile. It was only a matter until he could finally attain his revenge.

---

"He fought to save my life. I couldn't let his death be in vain. The first chance I had, I escaped and I came back here." Itachi said with his whole body bandaged up.

"While you were gone my lord, Hinata escaped." Mihniopaksu said.

Itachi didn't show any sign of anger, but instead he sighed pausing for an explanation.

"The attack was sudden, she used her Bushi no Jutsu to escape. We chased her out into the forest when Ryoku had decided that he would take no part in her capture." Mihniopaksu stated.

"What?" Itachi asked in an angered tone.

"Then, the small boy that goes by the name of Saru coincidentally found us while running away from the Shouten. Hinata and he joined forces to fight against us." Mihniopaksu said.

"If it wasn't for that damn Shouten boss we would have Hinata with us and that boy would be dead!" Deidara interrupted.

"Yes…the Shouten boss Kyu appeared and he captured Hinata as well as the boy." Mihniopaksu said.

The only part of Itachi that was visible was his blood red glowing eyes. They turned directly to Ryoku who leaning against the wall. "Explain yourself." Itachi said calmly.

"I just didn't see it fair that three Akatsuki members were against two small children." Ryoku said.

"That is not all Itachi." Mihniopaksu began catching Itachi's attention once again. "It appears that Ryoku shares some relation to not only the Shouten boss, but one of the captured demon vessels as well."

"Is that so?" Hidan said.

"His real name is not Tetsukawa Ryoku but in fact Sukomi Ryoku." Mihniopaksu said. "I believe him to be the father of Sukomi Garou. I do not trust that he joined the organization to serve it, but to destroy it from the inside as one of its members. So far we know nothing of him and all that he has told us has been a lie. He is related to one of the Jinchuuriki which makes it highly possible that he could be seeking revenge. My first instinct would be to dispose of him immediately so I took the liberty of sealing off all exits inside this base after you arrived incase you decided to do so. He may betray us at any moment." Mihniopaksu said.

"Tobi and Sakumo are most likely dead at this point as well. It seemed that we were not prepared to take down Naruto. He has become much stronger than we last saw him. But there is an even bigger threat than Naruto at this point: The Shouten." Itachi said.

"About our previous encounter with them:" Mihniopaksu began. "I at once knew that we would need the location of their base, so I had my Bunshin follow the leader at a considerable distance to find out the information. If you are planning an infiltration, I know just where to go."

"You have exceeded my expectations as always Mihniopaksu, and for that I thank you. Naruto is not our top priority at this moment; the Shouten is. They will be hunting for Naruto as soon as possible and if they get a hold of him, then we will fail our mission which we have for many years been trying to accomplish. At this point, if we are going to follow through with this infiltration, then we must acquire all the help that we can get. Ryoku being an obviously strong member of the group will be able to give us a big boost. He has sworn his allegiance, and for now, that is all we need and we are going to have to trust his word." Itachi said.

"Yes my lord." Mihniopaksu said. "When shall we set out for the Shouten base? With the medicine I am giving you, you should be ready in about half a day."

"Perfect, then we shall head out tomorrow at the break of dawn. For now, let us focus on extracting the last Bijou from the Kazekage. After this everyone go and prepare yourselves for the greatest battle you've ever fought." Itachi said.

---

"Brother, are you sure your body is ready to be fighting already?" Ketsu asked as all four shinobi ran with amazing speed toward the night sky.

"At this point, it doesn't matter if I'm ready or not." Naruto said.

"So why do we have to leave right now?" Kyozoku asked.

"Because, the Akatsuki would only work in a logical sense. It is obvious that they recruited members. But normally, they would never try to capture me when Konoha is simply a few miles away and I am in the company of strong shinobi. The only reason for their rush is that the Shouten is on the move." Naruto explained.

"On the move to where?" Ryu asked.

"When Kagai, one of the Shouten members we killed, died, I searched his mind for all the information that I deemed useful to us. I found out the goal of the Shouten, as well as all the Shouten members. It all seems to connect now." Naruto began. "The Shouten is lead by a man named Kyu who is enclosed inside the body of the fourth Hokage: Uzumaki Arashi."

Everybody's eyes widened at the name of Uzumaki.

"Long ago, there were the Nine Demon Lords who were shinobi who all invested seventy-five percent of their power to create a demon to help them rule the earth. But somehow, seven of them vanished with time. It seems that one of them had a change of heart and began to wipe out the rest. Kyu was the strongest of the nine. He had created the Kyubbi. Apparently, the betrayer of the Nine Demon Lords joined forces with Uzumaki Arashi, who also happens to be our father, to defeat Kyu. In the end, the Kyubbi was sealed inside of me, and Kyu was sealed inside of Arashi's body. However, Kyu's willpower was too overwhelming for Arashi to control. This resulted in Kyu attaining complete power over Arashi's body. Kyu's real body remains without a soul, safely kept inside the Shouten base. The only way to bring Kyu and his real body back together is to use the power of the Kyubbi, which brings me into their plan."

"But then why would they want to kill Jiraiya?" Ketsu asked.

"The Shouten member used to consist of six members. One of them named Amatari Sora, which also happens to be Saru's brother. Saru is the little boy whom we let run away earlier." Naruto explained to his older brother. The Shouten decided to collect the blood of the three Sannin in order to create another member who would be extremely strong to help aid them in capturing the Kyubbi. It just so happened the Sora was chosen to take Jiraiya's blood. So, they fought, and that is the reason why Jiraiya is dead. They created the seventh Shouten member, but he turned against them resulting in Kyu having to intercede and kill their creation." Naruto said.

"How many Shouten members are there now?" Ketsu asked.

"Sora died by my hands which we both witnessed many years before. One member named Haku died right in front of me against Hinata. Kagai is now dead. This leaves Kyu, Saru, the shape-shifting man named Ignorance, and the right hand man whose name is Kiran. Saru killed the Hokage Rikou Haburi because every time he committed murder, he would gain a piece of his memory back. Killing Haburi allowed him to remember everything. He joined the Shouten in search of his older brother Sora. However, Kyu never had any intention of reviving Sora in the first place. After Saru served his purpose, he would be disposed of." Naruto explained.

"So Amatari Saru is the last of his clan." Ryu said. "It was my mentor Haburi who participated in the slaughter of the Amatari clan many years ago."

"The reason why Saru has two arms because he took one from his dead brother." Naruto said. "With this reveled to us, we finally understand why the Shouten wants the Kyubbi powers. The Akatsuki are going to attack the Shouten as soon as Itachi is healed which shouldn't be too long." Naruto said.

"Why wouldn't they acquire the powers of the Kyubbi first and then attack the Shouten?" Kyozoku asked.

"Because they attempted that already and failed. They can't afford to lose the Kyubbi powers. It is now a race between the Akatsuki and the Shouten to get the remaining demon left. They want to wipe out the Shouten now that it has few members so that they are not racing against the clock." Naruto explained.

All the information seemed to keep everyone quiet as they all dashed from tree branch to tree branch in thought.

"One more thing…" Naruto began. "From what I understand, the person who joined forces with our father against Kyu was Garou's father. His name is Sukomi Ryoku. However his location is unknown." Naruto said.

"So where are we headed at this point?" Ryu asked.

"We are going to the Akatsuki base." Naruto said.

"Why is that?" Kyozoku inquired.

"Because we need one final member if we are going to take out the Shouten." Naruto said.

"Hinata." Ketsu said as his brother nodded.

"I know exactly where they are. We should be arriving their in just a few hours." Naruto said as they quickened their pace.

---

Hinata was fully rested, but still she had had no contact with the outside world. The silence was soothing in the beginning, but now it was torture. But the sad truth was that she could not escape by herself.

---

Arashi stood alongside his teammate both gasping for air in exhaustion. Kyu was on one knee in front of them even more exhausted.

"His Kyubbi is sealed…you must seal him in me now." Arashi said to his comrade Ryoku.

"You will never be able to stop me from accomplishing my dream." Kyu said angrily. "I don't care how long it takes, I will rule the Earth!"

"Then until we meet again…demon!" Ryoku said as he sealed the soul of Kyu inside of Arashi's body.

VOOM! Kyu's lifeless body fell to the floor as soon as the transaction took place. Arashi screamed as the battle over his mind began. A few moments passed and suddenly the Fourth Hokage was gone without a trace.

Ryoku stood there still panting but this time a small smile managed to make its way to his face. "Garou, I'm sorry that I cannot be your father. There will always be evil surrounding me because of what I have done. Revenge is a blade that never dulls, and now I am its target. All I can do is leave you a part of me. That is the reason why you have my demon sealed inside of you. Train well, and maybe we will meet in the future. Goodbye my son…" A small tear streamed down Ryoku's cheek as he took Kyu's body with him to give the dead man a burial.

---

"Hinata is not with them…" Ketsu said returning to the group after sneaking into the base. "They are extracting a demon out of somebody as we speak."

Naruto bowed his head in silence. "At this point, there is not much we can do for that person. Instead we have to stop all of this so that there will be no more harm. Hinata is with the Shouten."

"How can you be so sure?" Ryu asked.

"The Akatsuki considers Hinata as precious as the powers they extract from the Jinchuuriki's. They would never let her be alone. They would also never let her escape even if she wanted to. The only way that they are at rest with her gone, is if someone stronger than them has her. That is why she is with the Shouten." Naruto explained.

"It seems we're out of time then. The sun will be rising in just a few hours. We have to get to the Shouten base now then." Kyozoku said.

"Let's go!" Ketsu shouted as they all took off toward their main destination.

---

Finally, they had extracted all Bijou's except that of Naruto's. They all gathered together as Itachi spoke up with the rising sun.

"We now only have six members. Therefore, we will split up into two groups and take two different routes for this infiltration. Ryoku, Hidan, and Kakuzu will be one group, while Deidara, Mihniopaksu, and I consist of the other. The sun will be out in just a few hours so we must be as swift as possible. Let us now take our first steps toward victory. GO!" Itachi shouted as all of them scattered towards the Shouten base.

---

"My lord, we must get the Kyubbi before the Akatsuki does. They will interfere with our plans if we don't do anything about them. I say we go out and find the Jinchuuriki now or it will be too late." Kiran said to his leader Kyu.

Eight stood by them listening in on their conversation.

"There is no need…he his here." Kyu said tilting his head up.

BOOM! Suddenly a crash was heard from the room Hinata was kept.

"Naruto!" Hinata shouted as all four adults jumped down into the room now filled with sunlight.

"Hinata you're safe!" Naruto said.

"Ranpu…RASENGAN!" Ketsu shouted as he drove the incandescent yellow rasengan into the bars that kept Hinata. The bars simply dissolved a large hole and Hinata stepped out from the jail cell and quickly hugged Naruto.

"You've been gone for so long. I've finally realized what you have been fighting for all this time. I'm sorry it took me so long." Hinata apologized.

"The important thing is that you have realized that we must use our skill for the good of mankind. We have to destroy the Shouten and Akatsuki at all costs." Naruto said.

"Um…Naruto…" Kyozoku said uneasily as she kept her eyes on the door which now opened.

Three figures stepped into the room and the killing intent rose to great heights.

Kyu stepped in first with Kiran and Eight behind him. They formed a triangle of terror.

"Father…" Ketsu said softly as he stared into the eyes of Arashi's body.

"He is not our father anymore Ketsu. You have to understand that. That is the largest killer there ever lived." Naruto said staring at Kyu as well.

Kyu simply clenched his fists and smiled. "Uzumaki…Naruto…" Kyu seemed to breathe getting excited.

"Oy. I hope I'm not too late for the fight." A deep voice said from above.

Naruto turned his head back in amazement. "Sasuke…"

---

"I can't believe we're actually doing this. The last time we tried to fight their leader we all almost died in just a few seconds." Hidan complained as him, Kakuzu, and Ryoku dashed through the forest.

"It doesn't matter. We can't accomplish anything if they still exist. As long as they are here, they will always be a threat." Kakuzu said.

Suddenly, Ryoku stopped and faced his two comrades.

Hidan and Kakuzu stopped right after him and turned to face him. "Ryoku what are you doing?" Kakuzu asked.

"I'm making things right…" Ryoku said staring off into the distance. "A long time ago, I had to fight Kyu to save the world. It seems as though the role I played before has once again become necessary to play. The Akatsuki is dealing with something that they simply cannot handle."

"What are you saying moron? Let's go already!" Hidan shouted.

"I'll put it in simpler terms for you to understand. The Akatsuki…is in the way. Goodbye friends." Ryoku said raising his palms outwards towards his comrades.

SWOOSH! Hidan, who was to the left of Ryoku, was completely covered in a boulder of diamond. Kakuzu had disappeared just before the ice had covered him. Instead, the tree was frozen for Kakuzu's place.

"Kakuzu, there is nothing you can do at this point." Ryoku spoke out loud as a large jackhammer made of pure diamond formed in his hands. "I will destroy you along with your comrade."

With that said Ryoku jumped forward towards Hidan with his hammer over his head. Swinging downwards with great force, Ryoku shattered the diamond boulder and crushed Hidan's body killing him instantly.

Ryoku stood still with the heavy hammer in both hands waiting for a sound or movement.

"Come out now Kakuzu. There is no use in hiding old friend." Ryoku said out loud.

"You gave us your word." Kakuzu said appearing in the tree Ryoku had jumped from.

"There are bigger things than the Akatsuki. Like I said before you are just in the way." Ryoku said.

"So what do you plan to do?" Kakuzu asked.

"After I kill you, then I will make my way over to the Shouten and kill Kyu." Ryoku said.

"And what of the other members?" Kakuzu asked.

"They will fight against Itachi, Deidara, and Mihniopaksu. When the battle is over, I will kill them too. I am the only one strong enough to take down Kyu." Ryoku explained.

Kakuzu smiled saying, "You will not win this fight. I already have the upper hand."

Ryoku looked all around him as he saw that the trees were completely wrapped with black tendrils that slowly made their way to Ryoku's legs.

"You see Kakuzu; I'm in a great rush so I don't care what you have up your sleeves because I'm not going to let you do anything else." Ryoku said dropping the diamond hammer touching the tendrils all around him with his right hand.

The tendrils quickly froze up leaving Kakuzu trapped in one place frozen to the trees all around him.

Ryoku took up his hammer once again and jumped up finishing his comrade the same way he killed Hidan.

Ryoku sighed after all was done. He stood still for a moment looking down at all the blood he had made. Without a word he continued his journey towards the Shouten base, this time alone.

---

"Six people? That is all you bring to defeat me Uzumaki Naruto?" Kyu asked.

"Make that Eight!" Saru's voice came from behind the three Shouten members. Zabuza and he stood strong ready to fight.

"Hmm…this will be quite interesting." Kiran said with a smile.

"Eight." Kyu said snapping his fingers.

Eight dashed past his leader towards Naruto as both of his arms shape-shifted into spears.

CHING! Ketsu was suddenly in front of his brother clashing blades against Eight with kunai.

"Your fight is not with my brother…but with me. I swore that I will kill you, and I intend to keep my promise." Ketsu said through gritted teeth.

"Master, allow me the freedom to kill Uzumaki Ketsu." Eight requested.

"Go ahead Eight. But make it fast." Kyu said as he stood still. Kiran turned around and looked directly at Saru and Zabuza not allowing them to pass.

"Let's take him down!" Kyozoku said stepping forward.

"No!" Ryu said putting out his hand to stop her from moving forward. "You know how important Ketsu's revenge is to him. Let him have it." He said.

"Hn." Sasuke said observing the battle.

Eight jumped back as his arms turned into sharp swords. He dashed forward once again spinning in the air with his arms out. Eight's body spun with and incredible speed so that he seemed to create a propeller spiraling towards Ketsu.

Ketsu jumped up in the air pointing his arms down at the moving propeller shouting, "Chakra wave!"

A blue wave of chakra rushed down from Ketsu's hands and went under Eight and wrapped around to engulf his body completely from chakra.

Eight stopped spinning and stood in the air looking around. "What is going on? Why can't my body change?"

Ketsu smiled as he landed back down to the ground. "You use your chakra to alter your cells. But I disrupted that chakra flow so your cells don't know what to do."

"That was a pointless move considering that as soon as you let me go from this chakra jail, I will be able to move freely once more." Eight said.

"Then I guess I better not let you get out of there huh?" Ketsu asked with a smile. He dashed forward so that now he was under his opponent.

After biting into his thumb, Ketsu used the blood to draw a small "x" on the ground. He ran past Eight this time and whipped around, throwing a kunai at him.

Eight deflected the weapon easily as the kunai landed on the ground. When Eight's attention turned back to Ketsu, he realized that the floor was now covered in pink flowers.

"What the hell is this?" Eight asked.

"Only my best move." Ketsu said still smiling. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

Ketsu created seven clones as they all spread out evenly around Eight.

"Ignorance, allow me to show you the true meaning of chakra control. This move has taken me my whole life to accomplish, and I have never once shown it to anyone. The Shouten will regret the day that they killed my sensei!" Ketsu shouted as the wave of blue chakra Eight was trapped in disappeared.

All eight Ketsu's each threw a kunai at Ignorance who barely managed to block all of them on his descent to the floor.

Just when Eight thought he was going to land on the flower-filled floor, he sunk deeper until his head was below ground-level.

"What's going on?" Eight screamed from below. He could see Ketsu's face smiling in delight which sent chills down the Shouten member's spine.

Ketsu put his hands together saying, "Hana Ken…"

Kyu watched as his comrade screamed for his life in pain below while the flowers disappeared from above.

The screaming stopped, and the flowers disappeared, leaving a great big hole where the "x" used to be.

"Release." Ketsu said as the hole closed up crushing Eight's remains.

"Ketsu…" Kyozoku's voice trailed off in amazement.

"All this time…you could have defeated me, but you held back." Ryu said.

"This move can only be used for death." Ketsu began. "The "x" I mark is the spot where I dig a hole my opponent can fall into. Then I have flowers grow with a Jutsu I invented that takes up a lot of chakra. After that, each petal dissolves into thousands of pieces which I reshape with chakra to form very thin blades that attack my opponent. The kunai is a distraction so I can raise the flowers." Ketsu explained.

"That is actually quite a unique move." Kiran said with his back turned. "So now it's us against the rest of them master."

"I didn't see this becoming a problem until now." Kyu said.

"Why is that?" Kiran asked.

"Because there are still more on the way." Kyu said.

"What difference does the number make?"

"It is not the number of them; it is precisely the person that makes me smile." Kyu said.

"It looks like they already got this party started with us..yeah…" Deidara said as him and his teammates arrived.

"Itachi!" Sasuke screamed with his eyes widened completely.

"Kyu, it's time to bring and end to this!" Ryoku said appearing as well without his Akatsuki cloak.

Everyone became very tense as they all prepared themselves for the greatest battle about to take place: The greatest battle in history.

Authors Note: Hey everyone, I just wanted to say that I appreciate everyone for being here so far. Those who are reading, please review this. I am only one chapter away from finishing this story and I would really like to read your thoughts. Either way, reviews or no reviews I am still going to finish this story no matter what. I have one chapter left to write but I don't know when it will be out. But for the meantime, please let me know that you are still here…till the very end.

-Tetsu-kuh-


	29. A Destiny Altered

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Chapter Twenty-Nine: A Destiny Altered

"Sasuke…" Itachi's voice trailed off as his eyes met with his brother's.

"Let's finish this." Sasuke demanded in a cool tone.

The last two members of the Uchiha clan swiftly disappeared into the air and were gone.

"Oh no…Itachi is gone!" Mihniopaksu panicked.

"Let's take the tall man with the beard…yeah…" Deidara proposed.

"Yes, yes he does seem to be the weaker one." Mihniopaksu agreed boosting his self confidence.

"Hey you! Bald spot!" Deidara referred to Kiran who immediately granted him his attention.

"Deidara you fool! Did you think it wise to taunt him? If he's in the Shouten then he must be skillful!" Mihniopaksu shouted as he smacked Deidara's head.

"Master, permission to fight." Kiran said.

"Kiran, you may kill whoever you want." Kyu granted.

Mihniopaksu and Deidara jumped off to the side of the cave as Kiran pursued them.

"Mihniopaksu, you know what to do!" Deidara shouted as a miniature clay model of a bird enlarged allowing him to leap onto its backside and depart into the air.

"Shut up and don't tell me what to do!" Mihniopaksu hollered at his teammate already forming a string of hand seals. "Kenkon no Jutsu!"

"Genjutsu?" Kiran asked looking all around himself.

"Deidara do it now!" Mihniopaksu shouted with his hands still linked.

Deidara smiled deviously as he hurled a small bomb over to Kiran's face. "Wait for it…" He said to himself full of excitement.

Kiran caught the bomb and in a split second, it vanished from his hand.

"Where's the boom?!" Mihniopaksu asked Deidara who suddenly exploded creating a copious amount of smoke to appear. "Deidara no!!!" He screamed reaching his hand out.

"Don't worry I didn't die that easily!" The actual Deidara said behind Kiran flinging another bomb toward his opponent.

The sound of the bang caused Deidara to grin once more from the enthusiasm. "My art…is magnificent!" But that same smile faded as quickly as lightning when Deidara saw Kiran behind Mihniopaksu.

Mihniopaksu fell to the floor the moment Kiran pierced his heart with his fist.

"You'll pay for that!" Deidara screamed enveloped with rage flying towards his opponent.

Suddenly, a Bunshin unexpectedly grabbed Deidara from behind wrapping itself around him.

"Nobody ever calls me bald spot." Kiran said with an emotionless face as the Bunshin self-destructed killing the second Akatsuki member.

Meanwhile no physical tension had occurred between the rest of the group.

"Son, you have grown so much." Kyu said to Naruto.

"You'll pay for mocking my father!" Naruto screamed charging at the Shouten leader.

Naruto took four steps and halted in his path when Kiran came directly in between him and his opponent.

"Move out of my way!" Naruto barked through gritted teeth.

"Master…you said I may kill whom ever I want correct?" Kiran said not deviating his eyes from Naruto.

"Very well then, take him. But make it quick. I want my body already." Kyu said as he put his hand up creating a clear-blue barrier around Kiran and Naruto giving them their own personal space to battle.

"As for us, let proceed elsewhere to continue this." Kyu said to his six opponents.

They all jumped up out of the cave into the forest and began their match.

"Let's go!" Ketsu shouted as him and his teammates all rushed in the direction of Kyu who unsheathed a sword from under his cloak.

The six allies ran closely together as one keeping a constant speed closing in on the distance connecting Kyu to them.

"Watch it, he's going to strike!" Kyozoku warned her comrades when Kyu lifted the blade over his head just about to strike down.

"I've got it covered!" Zabuza said performing a cluster of hand seals just in time. "Mizu Jiten!"

Zabuza quickly spun around creating a large half-sphere made of water that performed as a barrier sheltering the entire group. But it was to no effect when Kyu's sword went directly through the blockade.

_CHING_! Nobody was harmed while Hinata held her sword against Kyu's, blocking the attack from causing any damage.

Kyu hastily sprang backwards into the air to avoid contact with the party.

"Suiton: Mizuame Nabara!" Zabuza said forming the needed hand seals. He chucked his head forward while opening his mouth and expelled an adhesive liquid from his gullet all over the floor that Kyu landed on leaving him unable to move. "Now everybody together! If you focus chakra to your feet then you can move over it without it being a hindrance!" Zabuza explained as they all neared their opponent.

Zabuza removed his large guillotine attached to his back holding it tightly ready to slice flesh.

Saru ran behind the group forming two light balls to form sending them ahead after Kyu.

Ketsu summoned four other Bunshins that aided him in shaping the rasengan made of light. "Ranpu…Rasengan!"

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" Ryu shouted as a golden spear appeared in his hand.

Everybody came by Kyu and did whatever damage they could and took off jumping high to the left and right sides after striking. Finally, Kyozoku came by and shouted, "Suishoua no Jutsu!"

A large volume of water rapidly materialized out of thin air and came down over Kyozoku and Kyu engulfing them in water that was condensing.

"Freeze the water!" Ryu cried out to Zabuza who obviously was knowledgeable in water Jutsu.

"GYOU NO JUTSU!" Zabuza shouted in the air as he approached the water coming down from his leap. He slammed his hand into the embodiment of water freezing the surface with really thick ice not allowing Kyu or Kyozoku to escape.

"Kyozoku do it now!" Ryu shouted from above the ice.

Kyozoku's muffled voice could be heard from below as she shouted, "Tategami Unari! Lion roar!"

The ice cracked all over leaving it vulnerable to shatter. "Don't stop fighting!" Ketsu shouted as he jumped up and swooped down jamming a large red rasengan into the middle of the ice. "Oodama Bomu Rasengan!!!" He screamed as the ice collapsed and the water exploded soaring high into the air.

Kyozoku jumped out along with Ketsu as she screamed above the water, "RYU IT'S YOUR TURN!!! GIVE IT YOUR BEST SHOT!!!!"

Ryu closed his eyes saying softly in concentration, "Akarui Nanatsu Touken."

Six bright stars appeared above them and raced down faster than the eye could glimpse and struck their opponent.

"SUITON: SAKASHIMA HARETSU!!!!" Kyozoku screamed once again while the water imploded this time creating a crater on the ground.

Everybody landed outside the huge depression and allowed the water to seep into the earth as they witnessed the damage they had done to Kyu: nothing.

Kyu stood there in the exact same spot and the only aspect that had differed was his clothing. His Shouten cloak was gone and the top half of his tunic as well. However his body did not have a single mark or scratch.

Everybody else stood above him on higher ground panting from what they had just executed.

A foreign voice came from behind a tree as Ryoku stepped out saying, "So it seems that nobody is really able to take you down. Isn't that right Kyu?"

Kyu stood as still as stone with a smile on his face. "So this is where the fun begins." He articulated.

Ryoku observed his surroundings, and then looked at each and every ally, all working together for a common goal. "Go home everybody. This fight isn't for you. You're all risking your lives for a useless cause. You will never be able to defeat him. You'll need thousands at your level just to put a mark on him. Leave this battle to me."

"We will not back down!" Ketsu screamed in confidence. "I will see to it that the Shouten is no more even if it costs me my life!"

"Then you can take over if I lose kid." Ryoku said shutting Ketsu up.

"Ryoku, why did you join the organization that killed your son?" Kyu asked.

"Why do you think? It was the only way to get to you! My job isn't finished until all the demon lords are gone." Ryoku said.

"The life you dreamed of, the life you wanted to spend with your wife and son, it is gone. So why do you still fight?" Kyu continued to converse.

"Because if I don't, then my family died for nothing. When I sealed Ookami inside Garou, I made sure to tell him that it was his grandfather that did it, not me. If Garou found out that I was still alive, then he would find me, and that would mean trouble. That is why Garou grew up always thinking that I was dead. I entrusted him in the care of my demon because I knew he would do a good job of protecting him. I just never saw it coming that it was the actual demon they were after in the end…" Ryoku said sadly. "So that is why…I have to take you down."

"How are you going to manage to do that?" Kyu asked still beaming. "I was always stronger than you."

"We'll never know unless we try." Ryoku said as he squatted and touched the ground with his left palm freezing a thick layer of ice over the damp crater.

Ryoku then formed diamond blades under his ninja sandals allowing him to skate form place to place.

"Oh? An interesting tactic indeed." Kyu said.

"We both know that it's faster, especially when I'm fighting in a big bowl." Ryoku said. "I hope your ready Kyu."

"Ryoku, don't disappoint me. I want a good fight before I conquer the world." Kyu said.

Ryoku said nothing as he skated swiftly over the thick ice around Kyu in a considerable distance.

ZOOM! All of a sudden a large diamond shard larger than Kyu himself in the shape of an icicle popped up in Kyu's location forcing him to move to the side as he slid on the wet surface.

"Not fast enough." Ryoku said as he pointed to Kyu's arm which had a piece of diamond stuck through it. Kyu pulled the icicle fragment out and let it bleed without worry.

"If that is not treated, then this battle is already over." Ryoku stated with a frown.

"This body is something I inhabit only because I was forced to do so. Soon I will have my body and this will be of no importance." Kyu said.

"What will happen to the Hokage?" Ryoku asked.

"Ah yes. I almost forgot that this body belonged to someone. It has been too long. My willpower was overwhelming so I was able to take control of it. That person resides in me and shall be free once I make the switch." Kyu explained. "However I will not allow this man to live for the moment that he is free, he will die by my hands."

"Either way, your muscles are pierced so that you are unable to move them." Ryoku said as another diamond shard shot up from the ice. This time Kyu avoided the attack and ran at his opponent.

"Bad move…" Ryoku said softly as he jumped in the air and shoved his diamond skate into the incoming face of his enemy. The blade seeped through Kyu's cheek and knocked him down to the other side of the large ice crater.

"Bam." Ryoku said as another diamond shard went up this time impaling Kyu through the stomach.

Kyu began to stand up in attempt to remove his body from being pinned down. "I won't let you escape!" Ryoku shouted as he extended the diamond shard straight up for almost a mile high. Then after forming a quick string of hand seals Ryoku put his hand to the freezing floor and said, "Hyouton: Kongouseki Nadare!"

Taking up three quarters of the crater, a mountain of ice formed higher than the shard that held Kyu to the ground. "KAI!!!" Ryoku screamed as he threw his arms in the direction of Kyu.

Suddenly the tip of the ice mountain began to slide down in a manner of an avalanche leading straight to Kyu. Ryoku being to the side of the large mountain simply placed his hand on his creation adding diamond to the deadly attack.

The diamond and ice mixed together and crashed directly on top of Kyu creating a devastating effect to the landscape. The crater depressed to a lower altitude and extended like a valley. The land was now scarred.

Ryoku stood panting as he stared at the huge pile of diamond and ice mixed together that finally had settled.

"You did it!" Saru shouted in praise.

"No, he's still alive." Hinata said staring down with her Byakugan. "BRACE YOURSELVES!"

BOOM!!!! There was a large explosion sending the ice and diamond everywhere destroying the trees and the land. After everything had passed, Kyu stood up with a large hole in his stomach, cuts, and bruises all over his body.

"So I see." Ryoku began. "You froze your wounds to stop the bleeding. That will only for a few seconds before your organs change temperature and you will die of hypothermia."

"Then I suppose I better do this fast then." Kyu said walking towards Ryoku. "There is nothing left that you can do to hurt me anymore Sukomi Ryoku. Your best move has failed and it will not work twice."

"Do you simply think that after seventeen years I have been sitting down lazily in peace? As long as you were alive, I had to become stronger in order to keep up with you. It's true that it was my best move but that was long ago. Here Kyu, I present to you, a whole new level." Ryoku said as he stuck out his tongue revealing a tattoo of a log.

"So then you can control wood now too? Quite impressive Ryoku; I suppose I should take this much more seriously then." Kyu said smiling.

---

Sasuke and Itachi had reached a common point for their battle very far away from everyone else.

"Little brother, you have grown so much. I hope that you have become stronger." Itachi said

"I have waited all of my life for this moment. I want you to know that you will not leave here alive." Sasuke said.

"What a large threat. How can you be so sure that you have surpassed me?" Itachi asked.

"Why don't you fight me and fight out?" Sasuke asked.

Both Uchiha clan members' eyes quickly turned red as they locked eyes into a dimension of Genjutsu.

Sasuke looked around and saw that the battle grounds had changed. "Shoot, I got caught first."

"Correction little brother, we both activated our Mangekyou sharingan at the same time. The result is a battle of the minds." Itachi said. "So I see you have managed to achieve this level of sharingan. How was it that you were able to do this?"

"I did what you told me to do. I killed…my only friend: Kabuto. After learning from Orochimaru, Kabuto was kind enough to aid me in any aspects I needed help on to improve my fighting skills. He was the closest person I knew. Three years later I killed him and achieved this. Everything I have done, all up till now, was so that I may be able to do what I am about to do." Sasuke said. "I'm going to kill you!"

Sasuke reached behind him and smoothly threw two shuriken that flew towards Itachi in a criss-crossing pattern as they moved from side to side.

They reached Itachi and crisscrossed just before his throat and passed him crossing once more behind him. Itachi smiled as he said, "You can't even thrown shuriken right?"

CHING! The shuriken crisscrossed one last time this time colliding with each other bouncing off to the left and right.

Itachi's eyes widened as he saw that the each shuriken were attached to four strings that were around his body. When the shuriken ricocheted off each other, the strings tightened threatening to slice through him.

However, the only object that was cut up was Itachi's Akatsuki cloak.

"Tajyuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" Itachi shouted from above Sasuke coming down.

Thousands of Itachi's were suddenly raining down from the dimension as Sasuke jumped up to join them.

"Chidori current!" Sasuke shouted as electricity flowed as far as he could reach destroying half of the Bunshins.

"Not enough little brother!" All the Itachi's shouted as they neared him each moment.

"KATON: KARYUU ENDAN!!!!" Sasuke screamed as a large amount of fire rushed from his mouth devouring the rest of the Itachi's in the air. On his descent to the ground, Sasuke noticed that his brother was already waiting for him with a large scroll on his back.

Sasuke landed quietly and safely looking at Itachi with killer intent.

"Sasuke, here is where the power gap between you and me will clearly show." Itachi said as he opened the scroll and bit his thumb placing a line of his blood on whatever was written inside. "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"

_POOF_! When the smoke cleared, Itachi stood in a fighting stance with a large black sword with a dark energy ball at the bottom of the blade. The handle was two feet long and the sword was nine feet long altogether.

"What is that?" Sasuke asked.

"The Akatsuki's secret weapon: The Jinchuuriki sword. Before it was our leader, Wushin Akuma, who held this sword. But after dying, it became my responsibility to hold it. However, anyone who yields it immediately falls in love with its power; for it has nine of the ten demons sealed inside of it. When Akuma carried this sword, it only had the eight-tailed demon. Lucky for everyone, Hinata did not touch the handle after seeing it. I lied to her saying that touching it could release the demon but I did it because I did not want her to turn against us and leave us for dead with all that power in her hands." Itachi explained.

"Nine out of ten demons?" Sasuke asked. "I thought there were only nine."

"The ten-tails belonged Hyugga Hinata who survived when the demon was extracted. She has more power than anyone can imagine, and her potential has yet to be fulfilled. Even now, probably stronger than everyone, she can still become much stronger." Itachi said. "Now I was planning to use our trump card for Kyu but I want you to see how behind you were."

Itachi swung the sword not moving one step towards Sasuke and the younger brother could already feel its force. The mind fight was discontinued as Sasuke and Itachi both came to the real world.

Sasuke fell to one knee in pain. He could feel his whole body completely weakened from that attack. He looked up towards his brother who still had his Akatsuki cloak on and no sword in his hands.

"So the sword was merely Genjutsu?" Sasuke asked.

"No it was not my brother." Itachi said as he removed his cloak with the large scroll behind his back. "But this time it's not a game, you will die from this next strike." Itachi reached for the scroll and pulled it forward from his back.

"Don't think that I'll give you a chance to use that sword!" Sasuke said as a ball of electricity formed in his right hand. Sasuke quickly got up and ran towards his brother who was now alert.

VOOM! Sasuke's right arm was caught by the wrist leaving Itachi no harm at all. "You won't get away that easy! Chidori!" Sasuke formed another chidori in his left hand but the same result occurred.

Itachi caught Sasuke's left arm and dropped the scroll to block the attack. Now Itachi had Sasuke by both of his wrists and they were face to face.

Sasuke smiled as he grabbed Itachi's wrists as well while another Sasuke came from behind Itachi with a Chidori charging to impale him.

Itachi's body curved to the side as Sasuke stabbed Sasuke instead. _Poof_! The Sasuke Bunshin that was stabbed disappeared and Itachi jumped back with his brother right after him.

"Take this BROTHER!" Sasuke screamed as he gathered chakra to his two fingers and hit six points on Itachi's body.

Itachi stopped in his tracks as a spike suddenly appeared from under his sandal. Itachi stepped on Sasuke's foot not allowing him to go.

Sasuke screamed in pain as his brother bit his thumb once more and drew a symbol on Sasuke's stomach. Itachi then with an open palm struck the seal activating it.

"It's no use Itachi. You are already dead. The six pressure points I pressed slowly liquefy your organs and there is no reverse Jutsu. You will die." Sasuke said in pain.

"Just like you Sasuke…" Itachi said weakly. "That seal will work even if I am dead. It is a death clock which when finished, it will instantly kill you. There is nothing you can do to prevent it. It seems we have come to a draw."

"You just couldn't die by yourself could you? How much time do I have left?" Sasuke asked.

"That…is for you to find out. Sasuke…take…the scroll. Take it and deliver it to Hinata…she is the only one who can…defeat…Kyu at this point." Itachi said. "It seems I don't have much longer."

Itachi looked at his brother's eyes and smiled slowly. "Brother…" He said as he fell on his back and liquid began to seep through his pores.

"A death clock…" Sasuke said to himself as he picked up the scroll and left back to the battle grounds.

---

"You are not going to be able to escape from here unless Kyu himself releases it." Kiran said smiling.

Naruto breathed deeply with a tint of fear. He could feel the killer intent radiating from Kyu. It was almost as real as actual flesh.

"I think I am going to enjoy this." Kiran said smiling even greater.

Naruto stood silent until finally he said, "I can already tell that you are the greatest enemy I have ever faced. What is your name?"

"Wushin Kiran."

"Wushin?" Naruto asked with his eyes wide open.

"Yes, I am Akuma's older brother. I am the first to reach the full potential of our clan power since Wushin ancestors. Hundreds of years ago, most men of the Wushin clan could access this special ability. However after generations that ability became harder and harder to achieve; until finally it was forgotten about it altogether. But I have done what many have dreamed to do. And now I stand here before you. All I ask of you is that you give me all that you have; because if not, then this battle will pass too quickly." Kiran requested.

"So you killed your own brother…" Naruto said. "Give you my all huh? That's a lot to ask. But I cannot simply leave my friends out there to fight Kyu. I need to go out there and help them. So I will agree to your request. You want me to do my best? Then I will. Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"

_Poof_! _Poof_! The dragon Naruto attempted to summon was instantly sent back as Kiran attacked to destroy it. The smoke finally cleared, and Naruto was nowhere in the barrier.

Kiran looks around but Naruto already one step ahead of him shouted, "Shinju Zanshu no Jutsu!" Naruto's hand came up from underground and grabbed Kiran's ankle pulling him down underground all the way to his neck.

"Please do not even joke with such a thing." Kiran said destroying the ground with brute force creating a hole in the earth.

"I have to end this fast then." Naruto said.

"I am not going to let you do that Uzumaki Naruto. I am not going to let you live anymore." Kiran said.

"Then in that case, I'm going to have to result to drastic measures…" Naruto said squinting his eyes.

"By all means…."

"Thank you Orochimaru. Onkyou Hakushu!" Naruto shouted running to the left side of Kiran extending his arms out and clapping his hands once.

Kiran screamed in pain as he grabbed his head. "What was that noise?"

"It is a sound Jutsu that makes your brain vulnerable to all sounds. It also leaves you disoriented which will definitely turn things to my favor." Naruto said.

"Don't think things will be that easy!" Kiran screamed.

"Thank you Zetsu-san. Oukan Ira no Jutsu!" Naruto shouted as a crown of thorns appears on Kiran's head. The thorns grew into vines that wrapped all around Kiran's body about to constrict crushing Kiran.

Suddenly, the vines burned as Kiran's cloak exploded saving him from death. "My Shouten cloak is made of chakra which I can change into any element. I simply exploded my cloak. That will not work either Uzumaki Naruto. However continue. This is getting interesting."

"Thank you Deidara. Hairiguchi no Jutsu!" Naruto formed the needed set of hand seals and his right palm suddenly opened up to reveal a mouth with teeth and a tongue.

Naruto held out his right hand as it devoured a huge ball of clay that suddenly appeared. It then regurgitated the clay to form a Bunshin of Kiran.

"Raiton: Bakushinchi no Jutsu!" Kiran shouted as he opened both of his hands to form a large ball of lightning. After formed, he quickly threw it at the clay Bunshin disassembling it completely.

"Thank you Kakuzu. Soshi Bakufuu!" Naruto shouted as he gathered chakra in both of his hands and released an elemental blast towards his opponent who was busy with the clay Bunshin.

The elemental blast connected, and Kiran was wounded badly. Blood gushed out from his abdomen at a quick rate. "Did you like that one? That is an elemental blast which contains fire, water, lightning, earth, and my personal best, wind." Naruto explained.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" Naruto said as he opened his hand to hold a small box. He quickly opened the box and looked inside at the black powder.

"Thank you Sasori-san. Boy this one took me a while to learn: Satetsu." Naruto said as the black powder rose from the box and compacted together to form a long thick needle pointing towards Kiran.

"What is that?" Kiran asked in pain.

"It is iron sand. The inventor of this Jutsu was the third Kazekage of the Sand village and I am the only other who learned it. It is extremely difficult to control and I am still a novice at this Jutsu. It takes a huge amount of concentration and chakra control to keep every grain of iron sand together to form a solid object." Naruto explained as the needle rushed a Kiran.

Kiran gathered chakra in his hands and shouted, "Chakra Seishi!" He threw the chakra at the needle and it disassembled upon contact.

"So I can see that you destroyed all chakra control into the iron send rendering it useless. Well done, but you do not have much left longer." Naruto said.

"Thank you Itachi. Katon: Moetsuku no Jutsu!" Naruto shouted breathing nothing at all into the air.

"Thank you Hidan. Doton: Kairyuu no Jutsu." Naruto said forming many hand seals finally having the earth at his command.

All attempts to engulf Kiran under the earth were failed as he simply punched through everything that came over him. "I'm not going underground!" Kiran screamed punching harder and faster.

"I'll be the judge of that." Naruto said pulling two kunai and scraping them together. The sparks emitted from the friction ignited the air creating a huge explosion all over the barrier. The only safe spot left was underground.

"Thank you Mihniopaksu. Daishinsai no Jutsu!" Naruto looked up and his eyes rolled to the back of his head in concentration.

Kiran suddenly appeared above ground even more beat up than before. However the exact moment that Kiran appeared on the surface, Naruto shouted, "Thank you Akuma. Isshiki Sumitsuki!"

Naruto's hand suddenly was surrounded with gray chakra as he drove it into Kiran's chest.

Kiran went flying to the ground and everything went blank.

"I know you can't hear me considering the Jutsu I just used on you seals your chakra and muscle strength. It also causes your nervous system to fail not allowing you to move at all. Not only that but your temperature will now decrease drastically causing you to die in less than thirty seconds." Naruto explained uselessly.

"Thank you Kisame-sama." Naruto said as he put his hands out in front of him where a large ball of water appeared. Naruto mixed the little chakra he had left into it and drank the ball.

Naruto then watched in amazement as Kiran used his trump card; the "blood limit" he was talking about earlier.

Kiran's body made a complete change as he became more muscular and his skin turned completely black. His eyes became completely white and his teeth grew longer and sharper. His body released an enormous amount of white chakra. He stood up as his wounds healed completely.

"This is how I killed my brother, and this is how I am going to kill you. Just one question, how did you get such a huge explosion with two kunai?" Kiran asked in a much deeper voice than before.

"Every single one of the ten moves I used from the real start of our fight are S class Jutsu I learned from my previous instructors. The seventh one allows me to breathe gas into the air and I let it spread all over as I tried to get you underground with my earth ocean technique. Since that didn't work, I simply used a spark to ignite the gas that was all over the air by that time." Naruto explained. "It seems that you have become much stronger."

"No doubt about it. I have never met anyone that can beat me at this stage except Kyu. I am going to end this. I thank you for a pleasurable fight." Kiran said.

"I won't let you win. I have not even begun to use my power." Naruto said smiling.

"You must be completely drained from chakra by now." Kiran said.

"That tenth move actually replenished most of my chakra. I can only use it once per battle. So basically, since all my best moves could not kill you, then I shall use MY trump card. I can see that you are in perfect health and better off than when we started. It's time to really end this." Naruto said concentrating hard.

An aura of blue chakra appeared all over Naruto as he screamed in concentration. Then a red aura of chakra appeared on top of the blue chakra and they merged together.

The barrier around them shattered with just the chakra. "Let's go!" Naruto shouted as he charged at his opponent and Kiran charged at him.

BOOOOOOOM! The cave they fought in closed in completely with the power. All that was left were huge boulders and rubble.

A boulder moved out of the way as Naruto stepped out without a shirt and with his pants ripped down to shorts. He carried on his shoulder the body of his dead opponent Kiran.

---

"So you mixed the wood, ice, and diamond to create two midget fighters and one giant." Kyu said looking at his three new opponents.

"Precisely. Together, these three elements become the firmest substance ever created." Ryoku said.

The two small characters Ryoku had made each had nunchuku and the large one had a gigantic sword. However, no matter how much time passed by, or how hard they would try, they could not hurt Kyu, and Kyu could not hurt them.

"Good bye Kyu." Ryoku said finally as all three characters exploded wounding him completely.

"You may be skilled Ryoku, but you can never defeat me." Kyu said.

"See, that is where you make the mistake of believing that you are immortal. You are nothing as long as you have a body to live in. You soul will go down with it." Ryoku said. "I'm going to kill you Kyu, because I am capable of doing that. I think we have already established that I'm stronger than you."

"If you were stronger than me, than you would not die." Kyu said completely angry as he disappeared and reappeared behind Ryoku stabbing his heart. Ryoku fell to the floor dead as everyone else got ready to fight.

"I'm not going to play around anymore!" Kyu shouted in anger. "Come, so that I may devour all of you!"

"Leave them alone Kyu!" Naruto shouted from above a tree. He jumped down and placed Kiran's body face up at Kyu's feet. "It's over Kyu. You don't have anybody anymore. You cannot win."

"Kiran…" Kyu said softly looking at his right hand man. Then he smiled saying, "ha, ha, ha boy! Boy you have no idea what you have just done."

Naruto suddenly fell to the floor screaming in pain as Kyu pointed towards him with one hand extracting the red chakra forcefully from his body. With the other hand Kyu directed the body over to him. He placed the red chakra into his body and suddenly the fourth Hokage fell to the floor completely wounded in all parts of his body.

Kyu in his real body completely untouched stood tall in his red armor and long red hair. He looked around with a devious smile and looked at his hands. "Like I said before, nobody can stop me. You, die." He pointed to Zabuza and shot out a red chakra ball that exploded immediately after touching him.

"Zabuza!" Saru shouted.

Kyu clenched his left fist and hit the ground sending Saru, Ryu, Kyozoku, and Naruto flying far off from that point.

"I am more interested in fighting you two." Kyu said pointing at Ketsu and Hinata.

"Well it looks like you're going to have to fight me too!" Sasuke shouted as he appeared holding the large scroll. "Hinata, use this!" He hurled the large scroll to Hinata who summoned the sword.

"My brother told me that it is the Jinchuuriki sword. It has nine out of the ten demons in it. If anyone can stop this man, it's you." Sasuke said looking at the blue haired girl.

"Interesting…" Kyu said reaching towards the sword Hinata held.

"Don't let him have it!" Sasuke shouted rushing towards Kyu. His efforts were in vain as Kyu simply knocked him away doing the same with Ketsu.

"Little girl, give me that sword, and I'll make your death more quick." Kyu said.

"Take one more step and I'll kill you!" Naruto shouted from above the same tree again.

"How did you get back so fast?" Kyu asked amazed.

"My speed can outmatch that of anyone's." Naruto said.

"Is that so?" Kyu said appearing behind Naruto who appeared by Hinata.

"Yes it is." Naruto shouted up to Kyu.

"Hinata, I can give you some time if you can stab that sword into Kyu's heart. That will end everything." Naruto said. "Are you up for it?"

"I'm ready to do anything to bring him down." Hinata said.

Naruto opened up his right hand's mouth and it regurgitated a small green scroll.

"What is that?" Hinata asked.

"Our immobilizer. I have to put all my chakra into it in order to activate this scroll." Naruto said as he drained all his chakra.

_Poof_! In Naruto's hand he held a regular kunai. "This may look like a regular kunai, but it's not. If I can throw this at his shadow then he wont' be able to move for a few seconds. But if I throw it and it gets stuck and it doesn't get stuck on his shadow, then it's wasted forever. Are you ready?" Naruto asked.

"Let's kill him." Hinata said as they both turned to face Kyu who had came down from the tree.

Hinata rushed at Kyu as they clashed swords together. "You think you can win with such simple tricks? I'm telling you I will devour you!!!"

Suddenly, Naruto appeared behind Kyu throwing the kunai as fast as he could at Kyu's shadow.

"FOOLS!" Kyu shouted as he jumped back just in time. "You didn't think that I wasn't listening did you? Now it's time to devour you both!!!!"

"Gotcha…" The real Naruto said throwing a shuriken with a very intricate design into Kyu's shadow. "HINATA DO IT NOW!!!"

Hinata rushed with all her speed but before she could strike her opponent, he was already running away. "Naruto he's getting away!" Hinata screamed.

Suddenly, a hand grabbed Kyu's ankle. He looked down to see the fourth Hokage clasping on to him. "Maggot! Get away from me!" Kyu shouted crushing the skull of the blonde man.

"FATHER!!!!" Naruto screamed as he himself jumped onto Kyu. "HINATA DO IT!!!!"

Hinata ran with just enough time and with all her might, drove the Jinchuuriki sword into Kyu's heart.

Kyu screamed in rage as his body began to crack with light trying to escape.

"He's going to explode!" Hinata shouted. "Naruto get out of there!"

"He'll escape if I do! There is no other way to defeat him! Goodbye Hinata…" Naruto said as the explosion covered the whole forest.

---

**TWO YEARS LATER…**

"Hokage-sama, Saru requested to see you." Shizune said to new Hokage Haruno Sakura.

"Well let him in." Sakura said. "And you know you're supposed to call me Sakura."

Saru stepped into the same room as Sakura and said, "Today is the day. Two years ago, heroes died, and so did evil. I just wanted to remind you of the memorial we're having later tonight."

"Saru, I could never forget…" Sakura said giving Saru a smile.

---

"This is nice isn't it?" Kyozoku asked as her, Ryu, and Ketsu lay in the grass looking at the stars in a country far off from Konoha.

"Yeah it really is." Ryu said.

"You guys, thank you for celebrating this day for me…" Ketsu said looking a little sad.

"That's what we're here for Ketsu. We will always remember Naruto." Kyozoku said.

"Hey Ryu, how did you get so good anyway?" Ketsu asked.

"I've told you this story many times Ketsu." Ryu said.

"I know, I know but I like hearing it." Ketsu said.

"Well, I was trained by the seven famous samurai ever since I was young. Each one of them gave me a special weapon and that is what use for my best move. So those seven stars that I use, they're each one of the weapons that I received from my previous masters." Ryu explained.

"Hey you shortened the story!" Ketsu complained.

"Just watch the stars you idiots." Kyozoku sighed.

---

"Wow; can you believe it has already been two years since we have started looking for him Hinata?" Sasuke asked.

"It's been so long. It has brought us to the whirlpool country. We've gone a long way haven't we?" Hinata asked looking off into the ocean.

"Well at least this is a nice pier that we're on huh?" Sasuke asked trying to lighten the mood. "Hey cheer up. Look there's a blonde man over there, why don't we go talk to him. After two years of searching, it has led us over here."

They walked over to the blonde man who had his back to them and his face to the ocean side. He held a wooden fishing rod in his hands while he slowly moved his feet which hey let soak in the water.

"Damn ocean. I haven't caught a single fish today. Now what am I going to eat?" The man said to himself sighing.

Hinata and Sasuke both opened their eyes wide when they heard the voice of their friend.

"Uzumaki…Naruto?" Hinata asked in a shaky voice. Her body trembled with surreal amazement as reality sunk in. Two years of searching had not been wasted.

The man turned around slowly showing a fatigued face. He had a small goatee growing at the end of his chin and he looked up with his ocean blue eyes at his old friends.

He opened his mouth and spoke softly, "…I have not been called that name for a long time…"

THE END


End file.
